


Gradus Inter Astra

by Triscribe



Series: Alternate Living Arrangements [13]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Canon-Typical Violence, Family Feels, Fluff, Harry Potter Raises Teddy Lupin, Harry Potter is the Heir to the House of Potter, Music, Potter Family-centric (Harry Potter), Rebuilding, The Noble and Most Ancient House of Black, Time Travel, Time Travel Fix-It, Werewolf Teddy Lupin, Worldbuilding, and now vice versa
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-14
Updated: 2021-03-03
Packaged: 2021-03-04 22:26:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 27,999
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25263814
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Triscribe/pseuds/Triscribe
Summary: The woman stared at him, shock obvious in every brushstroke of her being. “You’re one of Them,” she finally breathed.  “One who Steps Between Stars...”“I am. Took a hell of a lot of research to get me here,” Teddy said, eyes gleaming, “And I intend to make the most of every minute.”
Relationships: Teddy Lupin & Harry Potter
Series: Alternate Living Arrangements [13]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1040795
Comments: 236
Kudos: 626





	1. Stick the Landing

On the date of August third, in the year 1991, an extremely rare event occurred - an event consisting of a person appearing midair and landing on the ground with a yelp, preceded by said person not having previously existed anywhere else on the planet.

“Bloody hell,” groaned the young man lying prone on a well-tended lawn. “Bloody _sodding_ hell, that is _so_ much worse than bloody apparition...”

“Erm,” came a voice a bit to the person’s left. “What just happened? And are you alright?”

Rolling over, he squinted at a rather stunned old woman with wispy hair and a pair of pruning shears dangling from her limp hands. “Oh, I’m quite fine, I promise - would you be so kind as to tell me what address this is?”

“Number Six Privet Drive, Little Whinging.”

“Excellent, I’m exactly where I’m supposed to be. _Obliviate.”_ His abrupt arrival erased from memory, the young man got back on his feet, strolled over to the fence, and swiftly hopped across from Number Six’s backyard to that of Number Four. He took a moment to peer through the rear door, and caught sight of a rather thin, horse-faced woman bundling up an overweight pre-teen boy to head out. The young man waited until they disappeared from view. Then he backed up, counted the second story windows to align himself with the correct one, and ran straight towards the brick wall.

Most wizards might have used a broom, or a flying car, or even simply levitated themselves - but most wizards hadn’t become enamored with the muggle phenomenon of parkour, either. In mere moments, the young man squirreled his way up the wall to cling right outside his target windowsill. And then he knocked.

After a few seconds, the curtains twitched, before getting pulled aside just enough for a green eye to peek through. He grinned. The green eye blinked. And the curtains moved further, revealing a scrawny, dark-haired kid staring at him in awe.

“How’d you get up here?” He asked, words muffled through the glass.

“Good old fashioned muscle,” the young man chuckled. “But those same muscles are getting kinda tired, kiddo, think you could let me in?”

The awed expression faded into concern. “Um... I’m not sure I should...”

“Okay-” He re-balanced himself in order to lift one hand, index finger raised dramatically. “In the first place, _excellent_ instincts, it’s always best not to trust strange adults appearing outside your bedroom window right off the bat. _But,_ in the _second_ place, I happen to be here on behalf of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and figured you wouldn’t really want your aunt to overhear-” The window flung itself upright before he’d even finished getting the words out, and the young man nearly face-planted as he fell into the room.

“Oops- sorry!” Small hands helped him get situated again. “I didn’t- that wasn’t- that was an accident, I swear!”

“I believe you.” He took a moment to just smile at the boy. “Kids your age still have moments of accidental magic, s’perfectly natural - for that matter, I’ve known a couple of _adults_ who cause outbursts like that, if they’ve got too much magic and emotion mixed up inside.”

The look of awe returned. “Really? It’s not- freakish?”

“Nope! But, sadly, it’s also not what I came here to talk to you about - can we postpone some storytelling until later?” The kid nodded. “Thanks. Now then: I presume you are, in fact, one Harry Potter, and not another young wizard I’ve accidentally managed to stumble across?”

“Yeah, I’m Harry,” the boy said with a giggle.

“Excellent! I’ve got a big long mish-mash of names and titles, but rather than fool with all that you can just call me Teddy Black.” He held out a hand. “Pleased to make your acquaintance, young sir.”

“Pleased t’meet you too, um, Mister Black.”

“Just Teddy is fine, I get called ‘Mister’ enough as it is.”

Harry’s tentative smile grew a little wider. “Okay. And, just Harry is fine too, if you want.”

“Thank you, I appreciate that.” Not bothering to pick himself up off the floor, Teddy settled back to lean against the bit of wall beneath the window. “So. School starts in less than a month. And you’ve clearly already been on your trip to Diagon Alley, if that gorgeous bird over there is any indication.” Hedwig hooted from her stand, and Harry glanced at her with a pleased grin. “Before I start in on why I’m here, however, may I ask what Hagrid told you about the War of ten years ago?”

And just like that, Harry’s happy face vanished. “He said, um, it was between people who thought there should be rules against muggleborns, and people like my parents who didn’t agree with them. That the bad guys were led by, You-Know-Who? And he died trying to kill me, which is why I have my scar.”

Teddy nodded slowly. “That’s a good summary, and age-appropriate. But- well, I suppose I should start with a secret. You know the Dark Lord’s name, the one no one ever wants to use, Voldemort?” Harry nodded. “It’s a made up name, kiddo. Complete rubbish. That dinky dark tosser wanted something that _sounded_ impressive, because his _real_ name was Tom Riddle.”

Harry frowned at him. “Then why don’t people call him that instead?”

“Because not many people know it. See, Tommy boy didn’t have the blood purity of his followers, which would’ve made him a hard sell to be their leader. His dad, who he shared his name with, was a regular old muggle. Rather than let _that_ get out, Tom used a fake name, and then made it so scary no one even wanted to _use_ it, the loon.” Teddy rolled his eyes, and grinned when he heard a snort escape Harry’s nose. “I know you’re probably wondering why I’m explaining this - it’s because names have power, kiddo. Strange ones, like Voldemort, and long ones, like Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore, and simple ones, like Harry Potter.”

Green eyes dropped to stare at the floor.

“I know this is all new to you, Harry,” Teddy said softly. “Which is why I wanted to offer some private lessons, about the wizarding world, and names, and people - whatever you want, along with some of what I think you _need.”_ He kept his own gaze steady as the kid looked back up, and bit back a relieved sigh when he received a short nod.

-HP-

After explaining a few more things, Teddy took his leave, with a promise to Harry to return the following morning. He scooted back out the window, down the wall, and across the fence again in order to clear the wards around Number Four - not protective ones, of course, but watchful ones, from sources other than Lily Potter’s sacrifice. Spellwork built on love took love to power, after all, and from what Teddy had seen as well as the stories he’d heard, he knew there wasn’t an ounce of love for Harry to be found in his aunt’s home (Hedwig notwithstanding).

So. Best to get his own preparations underway.

Apparating away from Number Six in the dim light of early evening, Teddy appeared in front of a wooded cottage with a great deal more grace than his previous landing. From his right pocket came a carved stone key, runes inscribed along the shaft and handle. Holding the key out before him, the young man approached a plain looking wood fence and gate, hesitant of the faint whisper of power in the atmosphere.

The instant the key slipped into the gate lock, that whisper surged into a thunderous rumble, and then died away just as swiftly. Teddy let himself breathe again. In a moment, he finished unlocking the gate and slipped through, closing it behind him. Ten steps to the cottage door, and he repeated the process, this time with a crackle of electricity in the air. Once more, family wards recognized his right to entry, and didn’t blast the young man to smithereens.

Inside the cottage, a thick layer of dust coated everything in sight, from the grimy floorboards to the moth-eaten curtains to the wilted furniture. Teddy grimaced.

“It’s all going to be like this, isn’t it?” He asked aloud. “Merlin and Morgana, Grimmauld will be bloody _awful.”_

Momentary whining done with, he stretched his fingers to let his wand slip down from its hidden arm holster. Cleaning spells started to fly about, clearing the dust and cobwebs away, brightening upholstery, polishing wood surfaces. Soon enough, a reasonably cheerful looking sitting room began to emerge.

Then Teddy did the same for the kitchen and pantry, the bathroom, and the combined bedroom and office. A bit over an hour later, he returned to the sitting room, rolled aside the plush carpet, and brought out his key once more.

If he’d thought the gate and front door felt dangerous, they were nothing compared to the trapdoor set nearly invisibly into the floor. Those were overly strong but otherwise standard family wards, meant to keep unfriendly types from gaining entry in the first place - but the hidden basement was a refuge of last resort, and shielded accordingly, with the fears and prayers of four generations poured into its protective spellwork.

Even as he pressed the key to a particular knot of wood, Teddy could _feel_ those wards dancing ominously across his skin, with a promise worse than storm and fire if he came with ill intent. He kept stiffly still, until the knot finally slipped aside to reveal a keyhole. Faintly trembling hands pressed carved stone inside and turned.

The magic continued to linger for a moment more, before vanishing back into the foundations of the cottage. Teddy slumped where he knelt, and took some time to slow his racing heart, before carefully climbing down the staircase revealed by the open trapdoor.

A staircase which ended in what was less a basement, and more of a wartime bunker.

Along one wall was a pantry with fully stocked shelves and Preservation Charms, along with accompanying counters, icebox, oven, stovetop, and various implements. Further down was a distinct space for Potions preparation with its own tools and stored ingredients, and in between them a shute cut into the stone for waste disposal.

Another wall went completely to bookcases, with prominent labels distinguishing household spells from children’s stories from combat magic. Across the room were additional cases, ones with sealed glass fronts that displayed their contents: several wands, some swords and shields, a Pensieve, mirrors that displayed views of the cottage’s aboveground rooms and yard, and a few more grim looking tomes.

The final wall bore several empty picture frames above a grand fireplace, along with two doorways leading to short halls. Teddy dismissed those for the moment, knowing they went to extra baths and bedrooms, and focused on one empty frame in particular. It depicted a sitting room much fancier than the one above him, with an empty settee front and center, the cushions slightly squashed, as if someone had been sitting on them fairly recently. 

Teddy touched a hand to the polished frame. “Elizabeth, would you mind coming home, please?”

The wait, thankfully, didn’t take too long.

A woman with braided auburn hair burst into the scene, forgoing her seat in order to stand and glower down at Teddy, arms folded across her chest. “And just _who_ are _you,_ boy, and _what_ are you doing _here?”_

“I’m part of the family, as should be obvious,” Teddy replied, holding up his stone key for her to inspect. “And I’m here because the Potter Heir is in danger.”

Elizabeth Charlene Potter, Harry’s great-grandaunt of the nineteenth century, scowled back. “Well, then. I take it you could use some help _fixing_ that.”

“I could indeed, ma’am. First by requesting that you not tell anyone else the Kiln is once more in use.”

The woman’s glare deepened. “As if I _need_ reminding. I built this place with my brother, our father, our grandparents, _and_ our great-grandmother, boy. None of us would _ever_ discuss it or put it in danger.”

Teddy nodded. “I appreciate that, ma’am, just as I’m sure _you_ can appreciate why I had to make sure.”

“Hmph.”

“Second, I need to know if you can discreetly gather the others back from their secondary portraits - subtle eyes and ears will be of great importance in the coming months, but there’s soon to be a small boy arriving here who could use better connection to his family, too.”

At that, Elizabeth’s eyes finally softened, just a tad. “They’ll all be back, I can promise you that.”

“Thank you. I’ll let you know what else I might need as things develop. And if you have any questions about matters I forget to explain, please feel free to demand them of me.”

That statement earned a bemused noise. “Well then, perhaps we can start with your _name?”_

Teddy smiled grimly. “Edward Remus Lupin. I’m the Leader of the Weeping Willow Werewolves, Heir to the Marauders, grandson of House Black, godson of House Potter, and an honorary member of House Weasley. Or I will be, once I’m born in seven years, at any rate.”

"I beg your pardon?"

"Ever heard of Gradus Inter Astra, Aunt Elizabeth? Or perhaps its more common name, the Step Back ritual?"

The woman stared at him, shock obvious in every brushstroke of her being. “You’re one of Them,” she finally breathed. “One who Steps Between Stars...”

“I am. Took a hell of a lot of research to get me here,” Teddy said, eyes gleaming, “And I intend to make the most of every minute.”


	2. Leap of Faith

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Earning Harry’s trust was far, far too easy. “Would you be interested in staying somewhere else until school starts?”

Earning Harry’s trust was far, _far_ too easy. It only took a week of climbing through the window before Teddy felt ready to make his move. “I hope you don’t mind me saying this, kiddo, but- you’re not used to being in this room, are you?”

Harry froze, mid-process of stacking up the textbooks they were poking through. “Um...”

“Your original letter was addressed to the Cupboard Under the Stairs,” Teddy pointed out, not unkindly.

“I... yeah. That, that was my space, before Hagrid scared Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon, and they moved me up here.” Harry smiled bitterly. “I still think of this as Dudley’s second bedroom.”

Teddy gave a slow nod. “Would I be wrong in guessing they aren’t letting you out much anymore either?”

“No.”

“And that you didn’t always get breakfast or dinner before the letters came?”

Harry shrugged. “Still don’t. Sometimes Aunt Petunia forgets. Or says she does, anyway.”

Another nod. And then the most important question of all. “Would you be interested in staying somewhere else until school starts?”

Harry’s head shot up so fast his glasses nearly flew from his face.

-HP-

_A conversation started up with the new Muggle Studies teacher, a few shared drinks, some subtle questions... she was genuinely looking forward to her predecessor’s return, hoping to pick his brain before the new term began and her classroom filled with a mix of genuine students and slackers looking for an easy O..._

_He stayed silent under the Invisibility Cloak, waiting outside the Leaky Cauldron for half an hour before the allotted time. When Quirrell stepped into view, a combined stunner and disillusionment spell took him down with no notice from others going by. A few wand gestures saw the unconscious bearer of Voldemort’s shade slipped into an expanded trunk warded better than half the vaults at Gringotts, and that was that._

_Until the horcruxes were all destroyed, the Dark Lord wouldn’t be getting_ anywhere _near Harry._

-HP-

“Harry James Potter,” Teddy announced, “Welcome to the Kiln!”

Harry threw up on his shoes.

After getting the mess cleaned up and exchanging profuse apologies (“Not your fault, kiddo, I forgot what Apparition is like the first few times!”) they actually approached the plain wooden fence. Teddy kept one hand curled around the key in his pocket, the one meant for spouses and adoptions, but thankfully didn’t need it: the wards recognized Harry’s blood as soon as he touched the gate handle, and it swung open obligingly with nary a trance of thunder or lightning.

“Feel anything?” Teddy asked as they stepped through. Harry frowned thoughtfully.

“...I think so,” he finally answered, moving towards the cottage. “Like- well, I’ve had to tend the fireplace before, when it was cold out, and right next to the flames isn’t great, but now I feel like when I’d stand a few steps back. It’s warm, not hot, and it’s... It’s nice.”

“It’s the property knowing you’re family,” Teddy replied, smiling. “If it ever _gets_ hot, or extra cold, _that’s_ a bad sign - but warmth is meant to be welcoming.”

The kid blinked up at him. When they arrived at the front door, before reaching for the knob, Harry rested his hand against the wall. “Thank you, for welcoming me.” Teddy felt a swell in the wards. Harry clearly caught more of it, because he shuddered slightly and then sneezed. “Whoa. I _definitely_ felt _that!”_

Laughing, Teddy gestured for him to turn the doorknob.

-HP-

_He commandeered one of the bunker’s guest bedrooms to be a private office. The Step Back spell hadn’t allowed for luggage, so instead he’d painstakingly sewed dozens of extra pockets onto his long leather coat, inside and out, with buttons to hold them shut and expanded space within every single one. Snacks and medical supplies, weapons and memory vials, but most importantly, notes. Pages upon folded pages of notes._

_“Every year there was something different: the Philosopher’s Stone, the Chamber of Secrets, Sirius and Pettigrew, the Tournament...”_

_“-still remember our first flying lesson, when that broom jumped right up into Harry’s hand - and then of course there was Neville and Malfoy and that Remembrall mess-”_

_“...he never did like anyone to make a fuss over him. Sometimes the good things were alright, but certainly not the bad. I don’t know how long he went hiding those scars from Umbridge’s Blood Quill, and quite frankly I’m not sure I want to.”_

_Sheets of parchment went up onto the walls, lengths of color-coded string connecting events that led to one another but weren’t sequential, highlighted names showing up every so often. To anyone else, it would look like a madman’s rabid nightmare ramblings._

_To Teddy, it looked like a plan._

-HP-

After giving Harry a brief tour of the cottage, Teddy led him back into the living room, and stopped. “Alright. Can you feel anything different in here, specifically?”

Frowning, the kid shut his eyes. He tilted his head slightly, dark fringe sweeping over his glasses. They’d need to get some proper replacements for him soon enough, Teddy mused silently.

“Is there-” Harry paused. “There should be another door in here. Right?”

“There _is_ another one. Think you can find it?”

Keeping his eyes shut, the boy turned in place - and sure enough, three steps forward put him directly over the trapdoor. “Here?” He opened his eyes and looked down expectantly, only to frown upon seeing the russet-colored rug.

Teddy chuckled. “Step back and let me move that, if y’don’t mind.” Harry did so, though his frown grew sharper as a plain old hardwood floor was revealed. “Don’t just look - _feel.”_

Green eyes squinted. Harry crouched, shuffled forward... and put his hand right on top of a particular knot in the wood. _“Here.”_

Oh, Elizabeth and the others were going to be _very_ pleased.

-HP-

_Dear Remus Lupin,_

_I’m writing to you on behalf of one Harry Potter, and before you ask, no, I do not answer to Albus Dumbledore. I doubt he’s even aware of my actions quite yet, let alone my identity or motives, and I beg of you to keep quiet when he inevitably asks._

_To be brief, Mister Lupin, it’s come to my attention that the Defense Professor lined up for this school year at Hogwarts will not be able to fulfill his commitment. With so little time before the fall term begins, Dumbledore will be pressed for options to locate a suitable replacement. I am fully aware of your monthly requirements, sir, and I’m pleading with you regardless to reach out to the school. We both know of the excellent grades you earned, and the war you survived, and I am dead certain there is a great deal of kindness and patience in your soul that would doubtlessly benefit the students... especially one soon-to-be first year boy in particular._

_Dumbledore would surely dodge these questions if you asked them of him, but I have no such need to play chessmaster: Harry has not had a happy childhood. He does not have friends, nor close ties with his relatives. He isn’t inclined to trust authority figures, for good reasons, and before receiving his Hogwarts letter knew nothing truthful about his parents or their shared magic._

_I’ve spent the last several days doing what I can to rectify these things. Yesterday morning, I went a step further, by bringing him to stay with me at a Potter family safehouse - one warded so heavily that ONLY Potter family members can access it, which is why I assume James and Lily chose to hide elsewhere during the war, so they could still be visited by friends and allies._

_(It is for this reason only that I don’t invite you to come visit Harry in person at this particular time. If, however, you do get the Defense professorship, I’ll inform him of your shared connection beforehand - and even if you don’t, we can certainly arrange a meeting at Christmas time.)_

_Dumbledore will, no doubt, see my taking this step as an attempt at wresting control of Harry away from him. It isn’t, simply because Harry is a_ person, _not a pawn to_ be _controlled. He deserves to get to run around a backyard, to read whatever he wishes, to ask questions others should’ve been available to answer for him all his life._

_There are dangers still present for him, of course, which is why precautions must be taken, and another part of why I’m begging you to apply to Hogwarts. For a specific example: in Lucius Malfoy’s holding is an artifact of Voldemort’s called a horcrux, which I have reason to believe the man will unleash onto the school within the next two or three years. If possible, I will retrieve and destroy it, along with the other horcruxes that the Dark bastard left behind - but doing so will occupy a great deal of time, with little certainly I’ll come out the other end unharmed or even alive. I would not see Harry left alone and defenseless again if this is to be the case._

_And if you try to argue that your being around him poses a danger once a month, think again - I brew my own Wolfsbane potion every four weeks. Harry knows what’s coming in three days, and isn’t the least bit fearful. He will be cautious, based off of my warnings, but certainly not cruel or terrified either._

_So, again Mister Lupin, I am begging you: apply for the Defense professorship. Watch over Harry when I cannot. Tell him stories, make him laugh, let him know without doubt that he was and is_ loved, _for these are the things he is most lacking, which no child deserves to suffer._

_Sincerely,_

_-One who Steps Between Stars_

_P.S. Wormtail is alive. Padfoot was framed. I’ll be fixing this, too._

-HP-

“You remember what I said about how to approach me, right?”

“Yes, Teddy.” The boy rolled his eyes. “I’m to run forward recklessly and disregard any body language that you’re feeling alarmed or defensive.”

For someone who’d only been living with him a few days, Harry had mastered the art of deadpan sarcasm awfully quickly. Teddy made sure to say so, and got a snort for it. “Alright, then, just remember to give me a couple hours before you come up.” With that, he downed his goblet of Wolfsbane, shuddered at the taste, and headed for the stairs. A small hand catching his sleeve made him pause on the way, though.

“Thank you, Teddy,” Harry said quietly. “For- everything.”

Smiling, the young man reached down to ruffle his hair. “You’re welcome, kiddo. And thank _you,_ for being willing to trust me.” Well aware of the portraits watching them, Teddy acted on an impulse - he leaned down to press a quick kiss to the crown of Harry’s head, and chuckled when the kid’s eyebrows shot up to disappear behind his fringe. “I’ll see you in a bit, yeah? Unless you want to skip tonight and just stay down here, which would be fine.”

“Uh... no, I- I’ll be up.” Stunned, Harry gently touched the top of his head, and didn’t move again even as Teddy resumed his climb.

In the cottage’s living room, the young man stretched, arms above his head and leaning side to side. Then he shucked off his shirt and trousers, setting them alongside the pile of soft blankets he’d gathered earlier in the day. Traipsing out through the front door, he picked a good looking spot in the grass to sit and wait.

Soon enough, the full moon above reached its peak glow, and the itchiness Teddy had been struggling to ignore all day erupted into a full-body rash sensation. He bit back a hiss, focusing on steadying his mind even as his body began to twist out of shape. The Wolfsbane helped, providing a sold anchor to latch onto, but pain was pain was _pain-!_

Seconds or minutes later, the transformation ended. Teddy rolled onto all four paws with a groan. He gave himself a shake, fur floofing out in all directions, before slowly pacing around the confines of his new territory. The wards rumbled with sharp warning any time he got too close to the fence, the stink of ozone filling his sensitive nose, so the wolf kept clear. He found a bit more space in the backyard than the front, and remained there, rolling in the grass and gnawing at his forelegs in turn.

At least until a new scent reached his nose.

Ears pricking forward with interest even before Teddy lifted his head, he dedicated every sense to studying the slim shape watching him from beside the house. _Small... small pup? Kin pup?_ The memory of other pups came to mind, black and red hair, brown and green eyes, small fingers that loved to scratch through his fur. New pup looked right, smelled right... Teddy thumped his tail against the ground.

The pup took that for the invitation it was, and slowly moved closer. He held out a loose fist towards Teddy’s nose, and the wolf accepted the opportunity to get a better scent. _Pack leader...? Too small for the pack leader, must be another of the pack leader’s pups. Kin! Kin pup!_

Delighted to have a new family member, Teddy jumped to his feet and barked. The pup stumbled back a step, so he licked his face in apology. _Giggles! Giggles mean happy! Happy means play!_ Nevermind that he wasn’t a pup anymore himself, Teddy _loved_ to play with his smaller kin. He barked again and darted around the pup, inciting more laughter. Then Teddy jumped away, and dropped his head onto his front paws, tail wagging in the air behind him. The pup’s head tilted to one side... And then he lunged forward. Teddy yipped, dodged, and dropped into the same position. Laughter again, and they went through the same process twice more, before Teddy turned and took off running.

The pup chased him all around the yard, sometimes jumping to cut Teddy off, sometimes falling on his rear when Teddy did the same. Back and forth they went, delighted giggles and barks echoing into the night air. A cool breeze shifted the trees around their territory, and overhead the stars twinkled like fireflies.

Eventually, though, the pup began to slow. Teddy looped back to circle him, nose snuffling as he checked over every inch. He determined that the pup was getting tired, and gently took hold of the false-fur on his arm to lead the way back inside the den. They didn’t go any further than the first room, Teddy flopping down onto the floor, his kin pup dropping right beside him. Little hands stroked his head, causing Teddy to shut his eyes with a contented rumble. The pup whispered _goodnight,_ and soon enough drifted off to sleep.

Teddy remained awake, though. The moon’s call was still too bright for him to sleep, and besides which, he needed to guard the pup. There wasn’t anyone else around to do so - no pack leader, no pack mother, no other kin pups to cuddle with. Which... wasn’t right. Teddy wasn’t supposed to be without a pack. Even at the not-home den, there would be friend-pack members, younger pups who looked to Teddy as their leader. 

A whine started to build in the wolf’s chest at the thought of being alone. The urge to starting chewing at himself returned, to bite through fur and flesh-

But then the pup leaning against him shifted, murmured something in his sleep, and buried his face a little more firmly into Teddy’s side. He went still. The movement ceased. Oh so carefully, Teddy turned his head, and gave a soothing lick to the scar-spot on the pup’s face, just above his eye.

He wasn’t alone. He had a kin pup to take care off, no matter that no one else was there. A pack of two would be enough.


	3. Mind You Step

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “I used to daydream, about having parents,” Harry whispered, a bit later. “But, I think, I could’ve added more.”
> 
> “Yeah? Like what?”
> 
> “...a big brother.”

Sunlight hitting his eyelids made Teddy’s face scrunch up, and he blindy patted around for a pillow or something to cover his face with. Soft felt suddenly appeared in his hand. It would do.

Muscles and bones protesting with the usual deep ache that came after a full moon, Teddy rolled from his side to his back, dragging the blanket up over his face as he did so. There were a couple of other felt blankets already laid out over his chafed skin, he noted absently. Then the sound of a kettle whistling caused the young man to bolt upright.

“Morning, Teddy!” Harry chirped as he practically skipped over. “D’you want coffee or tea?”

“Tea,” Teddy answered faintly, blinking at the tray of breakfast suddenly deposited in front of him. “Did you-?”

“Yep! I’ll be back in just a tick.” The kid vanished back into the kitchen, leaving Teddy alone with the (frankly scrumptious smelling) assortment of food. For a long moment, the young man couldn’t help but replay memories of countless times _his_ Harry had done the same: covered him with soft blankets, fixed breakfast before Teddy even woke up, and somehow always managed to pop in asking if he wanted coffee or tea right as he dragged himself upright.

Smiling sadly, Teddy let out a soft chuckle as he reached for the tray. “Never change, kiddo...”

-HP-

Hedwig didn’t much like going down into the bunker with them, so her stand was set up right before the biggest window of the living room, which remained open for her more often than not. Without any letters to send, she alternated keeping an eye on the cottage and hunting in the forest. Teddy assumed it to be a vast improvement over her meager time allowed out of cage at Number Four, or however long spent at Eeylops Owl Emporium even earlier.

“Do you think they told anyone?” Harry asked one afternoon, stroking Hedwig’s feathers as the three of them sat outside eating a picnic lunch. “The Dursleys, I mean. I dunno how they’d have sent a letter or something without an owl, but...”

“Probably not,” Teddy answered, after considering it for a minute. “They didn’t seem likely to want to reach out to wizards of their own accord.”

“Yeah.”

At the despondent tone in Harry’s voice, Teddy leaned over to poke him in the side. “Hey, that’s on them, not you, kiddo. If you up and vanished one evening on any decent guardians in the world, they’d move heaven and earth to find you. And y’know how I know that?” He ducked his head into order to look Harry square in the eye. “Because you are a _good person,_ and any family would be _damned lucky_ to have you as a member.”

Green eyes blinked rapidly, and then Harry scooted close in order to hide his sniffles against Teddy’s side. The young man obliged him by wrapping an arm around the kid’s shoulders, and just stayed quiet until the brief tears dried back up.

“I used to daydream, about having parents,” came a whisper, a bit later. “But, I think, I could’ve added more.”

“Yeah? Like what?”

“...a big brother.”

Something a little too warm to be comfortable grasped Teddy’s heart, and squeezed. _August 3rd, 1991; August 3rd, 1998._ “Well. Don’t need to bother daydreaming now, since you’ve got one.”

Harry’s answering hug drove the dark thoughts out of mind. At least for a while.

-HP-

One morning, Harry wandered outside to see Teddy standing in the front yard, arms folded across his chest, glaring at a couple of men with wands wandering through the trees nearby. Breath catching in his throat, it took the boy a minute to work up the nerve to dart across the grass and press himself against Teddy’s side. A warm hand automatically moved down to curl around his shoulder in a reassuring grip, and Harry let himself relax minutely. “Who- who are they?”

“Aurors,” Teddy answered in a grim tone. “Looking for you, I expect. But don’t worry, this place is hidden from those who aren’t family - they can’t see or hear us, and if they come this way the wards will turn them around again.”

A part of Harry’s mind really did focus on the words and feel relief, but the rest of him seized up, suddenly aware of something Teddy had casually mentioned but never actually elaborated on. “... _you_ wouldn’t be able to see it, if you weren’t family.”

The young man blinked, before looking down at him. “Well, no, but I’ve got the key. It’s the only thing that can let someone who isn’t a blood relation in past the wards - though usually that’s meant to be a spouse, or someone adopted.”

“Oh.” Harry could feel Teddy’s stare on his head, but he didn’t look up from the ground. “So, why are those Arrow-people looking for me?”

“Aurors,” Teddy corrected, turning to steer Harry back into the cottage. “They’re the magical version of policemen, more or less, and I expect they’re looking because Dumbledore finally realized you aren’t with your relatives anymore.”

Harry frowned. “Shouldn’t he have already known that?”

“Wellll, no, not really. I know I said I’d come on behalf of Hogwarts when we first met, kiddo, but bringing you here? That was entirely something of my own doing, against the Headmaster’s wishes. And there are two reasons why, Harry.” Teddy sat them both down on the sofa, and looked intently into confused green eyes. “First, because the Dursleys weren’t treating you right - I doubt they ever did, and I’m certain they never would’ve, either, because they’re rotten people. You understand that, right?”

The boy nodded.

“Good. Their behavior was _never_ your fault, only their own. I need you to remember that kiddo, because it’s important: _you are not responsible for other people’s actions or failings.”_

Another, slower nod. “...what was the second reason?”

Teddy smiled. “Because we _are_ family, just not on the Potter side. You and I both have grandmothers from the House of Black: a very old, very wealthy magical bloodline with a lot of influence in the upper circles. So, technically, you and I are distant cousins - which is why I have the super-duper special key in the first place.”

Harry’s eyes went very wide, and a tentative grin crept onto his face. Teddy grinned back, before he turned serious again.

“There’s another Black who’s a bit closer to you, though, and I hope to be able to introduce the two of you someday soon.”

“Who?”

“His name is Sirius, and he’s your godfather. He would’ve been the one to take you in after your parents died, except- well. Someone close to them framed him for betraying their location to the enemy, and so many people were willing to believe it that they threw him in prison without a trial.”

Harry sat up a little straighter. “My-?”

“He and your dad were best friends - they met on the train to Hogwarts as new first years, and became inseparable. When his parents kicked Sirius out for not obeying them as a teenager, he went to stay with the Potters. He fought in the war alongside your parents, and would’ve died for them... but he was a Black. A traditionally Dark family, and his own younger brother was one of Tom Riddle’s Death Eaters. A lot of people didn’t really want to trust him, so when the frame job happened...”

“They believed it,” Harry finished, scowling. “That’s _stupid._ That’s just like Aunt Petunia telling all the teachers that I was the cheater instead of Dudley, so whenever they saw me trying to take back the papers he stole, they thought _I_ was the one stealing _his_ work.”

“Exactly,” Teddy nodded. “Neither of those is fair in the slightest. But, until I’ve gathered the evidence I need to force the Department of Magical Law Enforcement to give Sirius a proper trial and prove him innocent, we legally can’t do anything. So, next month I’m going to break him out of prison.”

Harry blinked. “You are?”

“Mm-hm. It’s going to be on the next full moon, I’ve got the whole thing planned out.”

“Couldn’t you have done it on the _last_ full moon?”

Teddy grimaced. “I couldn’t, actually. You need to be safe at Hogwarts when I go, along with a man who’d be the prime suspect if anyone sees me.”

It only took a moment to put those pieces together. “Another werewolf?”

“Mm-hm. Remus Lupin - another old friend of your dad’s, too. He had his own assignments during the war that meant he wasn’t around when your parents died and Sirius was locked up, so he had to just take everyone’s word for what happened when he got back. With any luck, I’ll be able to convince him otherwise, and then you’ll have two uncles to pester for stories.”

 _Uncles,_ Harry mouthed silently. “And you- you won’t get in trouble though, will you?”

“Only if they catch me,” Teddy smirked, “And that’s not liable to happen any time soon, I promise.”

-HP-

The day after their conversation about family and Sirius and Remus, a plain brown owl bearing a letter arrived outside the front gate. Teddy cautioned Harry to stay put as he went to retrieve it, wand out in case any Aurors were still patrolling the nearby forest. Thankfully, nothing happened when he stepped past the wards to accept the bit of mail... and Teddy wore a grin on his face as he headed back to the cottage.

_Dear ‘One who Steps Between Stars’,_

_Your odd choice of nursery rhyme pseudonym aside, I find myself strangely inclined to trust you. I would be grateful for some definitive proof of Harry’s well-being, though, even if an in-person visit is, as you claim, not possible at this time._

_It should be good news for you to learn Headmaster Dumbledore accepted me to the Defense position at Hogwarts, after a few days of hesitating. I suppose I should be grateful to you for mentioning Harry’s move to a new home, or else I would’ve completely lost my composure when the Headmaster finally got around to mentioning that he’d disappeared from his aunt’s house. As it was, I very nearly shouted at the man, and had to leave his office before I did anything worse._

_I’ll be spending the next two weeks gathering up some supplies, and then I expect I’ll be arriving at Hogwarts on the Express along with the students on September First. Perhaps, you and Harry could both come to King’s Cross, and give me a chance to see both my pup and his new pack member. As well as explain what the bloody hell you meant by your postscript._

_Reluctant regards,_

_Remus Lupin_

Things were definitely starting to look up.

While he let Harry finish up washing the dishes from their breakfast, Teddy headed down into the bunker and made a beeline for Elizabeth’s portrait. “Any word from Hogwarts?”

The 19th century woman didn’t bother looking up from her book. “A new Defense professor has been found, thankfully. Some of the Gryffindor portraits recognize him as a former contemporary of my brother’s grandson. Something of your doing, I presume.”

“My hopeful poking, at any rate,” Teddy grinned. “And the Headmaster?”

“Still spending nearly all his time in his office, or else at the Ministry. Apparently he and the Aurors are going to great lengths to keep Harry’s disappearance a secret - any members included in the search effort are sworn to silence.”

Teddy’s cheerful expression faded into something a little more contemplative. “Hm. Suppose I ought to be grateful for that, though we’ll still need to be careful when September arrives... Thank you, Aunt Elizabeth.” The sound of footsteps overhead caused him to turn, and smile just as Harry appeared on the stairs. “Hey, kiddo. All done with the dishes?”

“Mmhm. We’re going to have another history lesson today, right?”

“Yep. Although, I’ve actually got to go handle some work of my own, so I’ll leave you in this fine lady’s capable hands, okay?”

Harry nodded his agreement, fetched some parchment and a quill, and settled on the ground in front of Elizabeth’s portrait. She smiled down at him, setting her book aside. “Now then, young man, where did I leave off with last time?”

“Muggle inventions, and the Department of Misuse getting founded.”

“Ah, just so! Well, my brother Henry and his wife...” Teddy left the pair to their lesson, and quietly went to his private office, the one with walls covered over by notes and string. Setting down the newly arrived letter, he picked up the small stack of photographs he’d been taking on the sly and developing after Harry went to sleep at night.

Pictures of the kid reading with Hedwig on his shoulder, or digging in the old, unused garden with fierce determination, or smiling shyly as he talked to the portraits of his family’s older generations. There was a particularly favorite photo Teddy had made two copies of: Harry, balanced on one of the brooms retrieved from the bunker’s storage cases, beaming with sheer delight as he hovered three feet off the ground.

One copy of that went into the stack he planned to mail to Remus Lupin. The other remained safely tucked away in the young man’s breast pocket at all times, along with an older, equally beloved picture: a pre-teen with teal hair in Hufflepuff colors, two smaller, dark-haired boys, and one tiny redheaded toddler, all piled into the lap of a laughing, adult Harry Potter.

The last picture ever taken of his godfather.

Teddy ran a thumb over the glossy surface, smiling faintly as the brightly colored family waved back. “I’m going to fix it all,” he whispered. “I promise.”


	4. Departure and Destination

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Biting his lip, Harry carefully set down Hedwig’s cage, and threw his arms around Teddy’s midsection. “Be careful, Teddy.”
> 
> “I always am. And you too, Harry. You’ll do just fine, I know you will.” Squeezing back, the man dropped a kiss atop his charge’s head. “Hey. I love you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, we no longer have internet access at my house which severely cuts down on my ability to reply to comments (I'm currently writing this sitting in my truck outside the sole internet cafe my town has at 5 in the morning), so here's a few answers you might all appreciate:
> 
> -The Weeping Willow Werewolves are simply the handful of Hogwarts students with a monthly furry problem, who all go down the the Shrieking Shack together. Teddy quickly became established as their recognized leader even before becoming the oldest present, because:
> 
> -His metamorphmagus abilities make the werewolf change less painful and debilitating. Teddy has fewer problems the day before, and a shorter recovery period after, which comes in handy when there's half a dozen other teenagers in need of blankets, tea, and Anti-Ache potions first thing in the morning.
> 
> -The Kiln is so named because the Pottery is reserved for use in another fic. Also I think I'm funny.
> 
> -Teddy arrived back in time on the date August 3rd, 1991. The same date in 1998, seven years later, is important for reasons to be explained later >:3
> 
> -As some of you have guessed, Things Go Wrong in the future, and a big part of Teddy coming back is not just to prevent the second War and make young Harry's life better, but to change enough that his godsiblings don't have to grow up without their dad. We'll get to the specifics of what happened a little later on, and I'll warn you now, be prepared to need tissues...

Somehow, the few weeks between when Teddy whisked Harry away from Privet Drive and the dawning of September 1st seemed to vanish quicker than the eye could blink. Trunk packed and shrunken down, Hedwig safely secured in her travelling cage, the young man took his charge in hand and led him out of the Kiln’s protective embrace shortly after dawn.

They Apparated to a point a few blocks from King’s Cross Station, Harry thankfully managing to hold in the contents of his stomach. Teddy pulled out a length of shimmering cloth from one of his many coat pockets, and kept the small eleven year old tucked against his side as he settled it over them.

“Wicked,” Harry breathed. “And no one can see us?”

“No, but they’ll still be able to _hear_ us,” Teddy reminded him, lightly jabbing his fingers into the kid’s side. Harry had to muffle a giggle at the tickling, but then he remained utterly silent as they headed up the sidewalk and into the Station. There was a fair bit of careful maneuvering to avoid being run into, even with the early hour cutting down on muggle numbers, and a repellent charm deflecting those who approached from behind. Honestly, Teddy felt more concerned about Aurors - he managed to spot at least two in muggle garb hanging around key vantage points.

“Alright, that’s the barrier,” he whispered as they walked along Platform Nine. “Ready?”

“Yeah.”

“On three, then: one- two- _three!”_ They hurried forward, slipping between a robust woman and a man with a baby before stepping straight through the column of brick. Harry sucked in a breath, and then they were clear - just in time to nearly crash into a thin man walking by on the magical side of the barrier. Teddy managed to catch Hedwig’s cage before it swung out of Harry’s grip, and thanked every divine being he could recall that part of his preparations included placing Silencing Charms onto the container to muffle her shrieks.

Only once the moment of terror passed did he actually look at the man who’d paused in front of them, and very nearly gasped in shock.

-HP-

_“He was a great Defense Professor,” Harry said, wrapping his arms around Teddy and settling back with the boy in his lap. “Only decent one in my whole school career who didn’t turn out to be a bad guy.”_

_“An’ he taught you to cast Prongs, right?”_

_“Mmhm, he taught me the Patronus charm. And I’ll teach you when you’re thirteen too, alright?”_

_“Yeah!”_

-HP-

Remus Lupin’s eyes were narrowed, his nostrils flared, as his amber eyes slowly passed over the space where they stood. After a moment, the man snorted and shook his head with a slightly rueful grin. He continued past, moving towards the front of the train. So early in the morning, no one else had yet arrived on the platform, and Teddy was able to track his progress all the way through one of the entrances.

It was hard, forcing himself to remain still as the father he’d never known walked away.

A small hand tentatively tugged on his shirt hem, prompting Teddy to glance down reassuringly at Harry. “Do you know who that was?” The kid shook his head. “Remus Lupin.”

Harry’s eyes lit up, easily visible behind the new silver wire glasses Teddy had arranged as a present. “Can we go talk to him?”

“You can, kiddo. Should have plenty of time just to chat before any other students show up - but I do want you to find someone to socialize with once the train starts moving, yeah?”

“Yeah, I know.” Biting his lip, Harry carefully set down Hedwig’s cage, and threw his arms around Teddy’s midsection. “Be careful, Teddy.”

“I always am. And you too, Harry. You’ll do just fine, I know you will.” Squeezing back, the man dropped a kiss atop his charge’s head. “Hey. I love you.”

The boy’s arms tightened for a long moment. Finally, he eased his grip, and scooted back. Teddy pulled out his trunk and enlarged it, adding a featherlight charm in exchange. They maneuvered over to the closest steps onto the train, where Harry slipped out from under cloak, accepting his trunk with one hand, holding up Hedwig’s cage with the other. Teddy reached to give his shoulder one final squeeze, and then retreated several paces.

He stopped moving after finding a spot with a view of the compartment Remus Lupin had settled in. Sure enough, a minute later, the older werewolf’s head snapped up right as Harry appeared through the window. Teddy watched happily as the pair exchanged initial greetings, and settled onto opposite seats with cautiously hopeful expressions.

At the far end of the platform, a family appeared in the marked apparition landing zone. Time for an abrupt departure, before things started to get crowded.

-HP-

_“You don’t have to come play with me,” Teddy muttered, kicking his foot idly against the tree trunk. Harry simply shrugged, and settled himself on a slightly larger branch just below the boy._

_“We always play on Sunday afternoon,” the man said._

_“But now you’ve got James.” Hunching his shoulders, the five year old refused to meet his godfather’s patient gaze._

_“That doesn’t mean I don’t still have you,” Harry replied._

_“But I’m not YOURS! Not like the baby is-”_

_“Teddy.” A hand caught his swinging foot, holding it still. “Hey. I love you. And having little James around isn’t going to change that. I promise.”_

_After a moment, the hand carefully tugged, and Teddy let himself be guided down onto the lower branch. Harry’s arms curled around him, hugging the boy close. “...you really promise?”_

_“I really do.”_

-HP-

With Harry gone, the Kiln felt much emptier. Teddy shoved the loneliness firmly out of his mind, however, and threw himself into preparations. Anonymous letters were drafted and addressed to various people, potions brewed and stored, all while the portraits kept him updated on Ministry and Hogwarts affairs. Some people were too smart to discuss important things in front of eavesdropping paintings, of course, but that didn’t stop them from paying attention to the general rumor mill, and keeping track of where important officials went for meetings and such.

“Lucius Malfoy paid another visit to Fudge’s office this morning,” Elizabeth informed him as Teddy finished stirring a new Wolfsbane potion. The young man hummed. “And there’s been new mutterings in the Ministry of Education of reaching out to Beauxbatons and Durmstrang...”

That news caused Teddy to grimace. “Merlin, I didn’t realize they’d start negotiating for the Tournament so soon.”

Elizabeth _tsked._ “The Tri-Wizard Tournament? Disgraceful. My cousin Arlin died in that wretched competition - complete waste of life and talent.”

“There might be another boy lost if we can’t prevent it. Can some of you start a whisper campaign? Remind folks of the deaths, the expenses?”

“Of course. I’ll instruct Charlus to seek out Dorea’s portrait, she’ll be better able to drop hints in the right ears.”

Teddy grinned. Sometimes it did pay to be related to the Blacks. That thought, however, reminded him of the next night’s dangerous scheme, and he let the smile drop. “Alright then. Has there been any word on Harry at Hogwarts?”

Another _tsk._ “Smaller than all the other Gryffindor firsties, and he doesn’t eat enough, either. I’m half tempted to pass along instructions for him on how to get into the kitchens, those house elves would put some weight on his bones in no time.”

_“After_ he gets his Invisibility Cloak back from Dumbledore,” Teddy warned. “We don’t need him getting any detentions for being out past curfew just yet.”

The painted woman grumbled, still decidedly unhappy about _her_ family’s greatest heirloom remaining in the hands of another for a decade. “Very well. In the meantime, though, he’s taken up with a rather quiet boy, the last Longbottom, I believe. They’re often seen visiting the Defense professor’s office together.”

Teddy blinked in surprise. “Huh. That’s a bit early... Must’ve met him sooner than Ron. Well, can’t change it now, I suppose. Thanks, Elizabeth.”

“Of course.”

-HP-

_“Grandma!”_

_“Oh, Teddy darling-!” Grandma Andy swept him off his feet, pressing kisses to the boy’s face that made him giggle. “My goodness, I swear you’ve grown since I last saw you!”_

_Only two weeks had passed since their last visit, but Teddy accepted the praise regardless. Behind him, Harry set a small suitcase on the ground with a chuckle. “He’ll be too big for you to pick up, soon enough.”_

_“Never!” Both grandmother and grandson declared. All three of them shared a laugh at that, before Teddy squirmed to get down on the ground. “Grandma, Grandma I gotta show you something!”_

_“Alright, darling.” She set him down, and Teddy pulled off his knapsack to fish around in the outer pocket. After a moment, he pulled out a piece of paper and triumphantly held it aloft. “Oh, Teddy...”_

_“See! It’s me and you and Harry and Ginny and Jamie, and that’s Mum and Dad and Grandpa Ted and Harry’s parents and Uncle Padfoot!” Teddy waited anxiously as his grandmother blinked several times. “D’you like it?”_

_“I love it, darling. Is it for me?”_

_“Yeah!”_

_“Then I’m going to have it framed and put up on my bedroom wall, where I can see whenever I wake up or go to sleep, and that way I’ll think of you at the start and end of every day.”_

-HP-

Teddy smoothed a hand over his breast pocket, feeling the subtle bump of the protective wrapping around his photographs. He cast his gaze once more over the Kiln’s bunker, checking to make sure everything important had been gathered up.

Elizabeth, her brother Henry, and her nephews Charlus and Fleamont all watched him with serious faces from the wall of portraits. “You take care of yourself now, boy,” the woman ordered. “And that child of ours, as well.”

“I will,” Teddy promised, putting on his backpack and tightening the straps. “With any luck, we’ll be back for a visit at Christmas.” The various Potters all nodded, said their own farewells, and then the young man turned to head up the stairs.

He used the stone key to seal shut the trapdoor, then the front door, and finally the front gate. Each step of the way, the wards softly buzzed - not the warnings he’d encountered a month and a half earlier, upon first entering the refuge, but rather a farewell of sorts. Evidently the place had gotten used to him.

Once clear of the boundary line, Teddy took a deep breath, and apparated to the far side of the small forest. Beneath the half-exposed roots of an ancient oak tree, he checked on his thick layer of protection and concealment spells. Buried seven feet below was the warded trunk containing Voldemort’s shade, along with Quirinius Quirrell’s probably _(hopefully)_ dead body. Teddy hadn’t dared risk bringing the trunk into the Kiln, regardless of Harry’s presence: the wards would’ve blasted it, and probably him too, out of sheer principle.

Satisfied that no one would accidentally stumble across the Dark Lord, the young man apparated to another location, this time much further afield. No one hung around the graveyard to notice him, but Teddy worked quickly regardless. The muggle Tom Riddle’s grave bore no flowers, no sign of any visitors - same for his parents, one plot over. Teddy removed the dirt from atop his coffin, neatly levitating it up and out. From clear across the graveyard, he picked a random stranger’s tomb to do the same.

Some would consider it cruel-hearted, switching the final resting places of two men, but Teddy figured he was cruel enough already for sentencing Quirrell to a slow, underground death. And this way, even if all else went wrong, there wouldn’t be any Bone of the Father easily available for Voldemort to rise again.

Coffins settled and dirt returned, Teddy apparated once more. He landed amidst salt-stained boulders, the crash of waves resounding nearby. Careful with his steps, he walked along the seaside cliffs, shivering every so often even with the sun shining down. After a while, the young man found something suitable: a cleft in the stone, leading into a reasonably dry cave, no high tide marks to be seen. A handful of whispered words and flickers with his wand set up some protective wards at the entrance, and then Teddy set about making camp. As the afternoon slid by, his skin itched worse and worse, but he held off on the temptation to take his Wolfsbane early - bad enough his dose would be hours old, and less potent for the delay.

Sleeping pallet and warming charms in place, campfire and cooking implements arranged, Teddy settled in to wait until moonrise.

Outside his chosen cave and halfway across the wave-tossed bay, Azkaban awaited.


	5. Padfoot: Werewolf, There Wolf

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Somehow, though, Sirius could always tell the night of the full moon. Maybe it was something in the cacophony of inmates, or perhaps just an instinct born of years from making the change to join Moony... either way, he always knew.
> 
> Which was why the sudden scent of a wolf in the air made his muscles stiffen up.

A slowly rising and falling wail the next cell over made Sirius curl further into himself. It did no good to cover his ears - the sounds of his insane fellow inmates could never be blocked out, especially not when he felt like joining them. Shifting into Padfoot was right out on nights like this, as his dog form’s ears just picked up on extra screams from other floors.

Without a window, he had nothing to mark the passage of time; meals were always the same, at opposite ends of the day, no telling which was breakfast and which was dinner unless a guard happened to sarcastically mention it. Somehow, though, Sirius could always tell the night of the full moon. Maybe it was something in the cacophony of inmates, or perhaps just an instinct born of years from making the change to join Moony... either way, he always knew.

Which was why the sudden scent of a wolf in the air made his muscles stiffen up.

Still curled up in the far corner of his cell, Sirius stared at his door, trembling. _Bitter-wind-stinging-salt_ always dominated the smells of Azkaban, though an occasional odor of personal filth or decay managed to reach his nose. The unique smells of guards whenever they patrolled past or delivered meals were always notable; Dementors carried no scent at all, adding to their otherworldly wrongness.

Anything different would be bound to stand out. The hint of _forest-wolf-wary-hunting_ brought Sirius to full attention, especially as it grew closer. He belatedly wondered if it might be hunting for _him,_ just before the scent developed a layer of satisfaction, and something scratched at the solid steel door of his maximum security cell.

Sirius continued to tremble.

After a few moments, a different scraping sound reached his ears, followed by the telltale click of the door unlocking. It swept open with a shove, revealing the beast on the other side.

Big, lean, with the shorter snout and larger claws of a typical werewolf. For a brief, hysterical moment, Sirius thought it might’ve been Moony - but the fur was different, honey brown rather than sandy blonde. The resemblance was otherwise uncanny, though...

A questioning rumble brought Sirius back to himself. He shuddered once, before refocusing on the wolf sitting in the doorway of his cell. “Hello,” he croaked.

The beast huffed.

“I must be hallucinating,” Sirius muttered. “Have you come to show me the way out, then?”

Ears flicked towards him, then away. The wolf stood, and pawed twice at the stone floor. Sucking in a shaky breath (and violently suppressing the crazed laugh that wanted to claw its way out of his throat), Sirius pushed himself upright. Another breath, and he shifted into Padfoot.

The wolf rumbled again, possibly in approval, before shuffling back to give him room to slip out the room. Once Padfoot’s tail cleared, the wolf reached to grasp the handle in his jaws, and tug the heavy door back into place. A click from the latch, and he leaned further up to retrieve the large key.

Door once again locked, the wolf started trotting down the empty corridor, Padfoot keeping in his shadow. They made good time - human guards could be smelled in advance and avoided, whereas the pair simply pressed up against the nearest wall to slip around patrolling Dementors. At the far end of the building, the wolf ducked into a break room to drop the iron key onto a table with others just like it. Then he led Padfoot down a length of stairs, to emerge onto a floor with lower security cells, these with barred rather than solid doors. Thankfully, they only needed to pass a handful in order to reach the next staircase, and only a single prisoner saw them. “Heeere, doggy doggy doggies...”

The distant call faded. They kept moving.

Eventually, on the ground floor, the wolf headed towards a corridor full of storage rooms. He paused outside of one, ears cocked, before carefully biting the doorknob and turning it.

Inside, Padfoot scratched at his nose. Too many scents, old as they were, overwhelmed him. The wolf didn’t seem to be as affected, moving swiftly between rows of shelves. A pleased bark rang out soon enough, and shortly after he returned to the entrance, a small box held between his jaws.

When the lid got pried off, Padfoot wagged his tail at the sight of a familiar wand. Alongside were two small round mirrors, a rather worn wallet, and a couple of other odds and ends that had been in his pockets the night of his arrest.

The wolf snorted and pawed at the box, head tilted inquiringly. Padfoot shifted back into Sirius. He shuddered at the renewed cold, but managed to grasp his wand, the mirrors, and the wallet before changing again. His rescuer huffed, and nudged the box with its remaining contents into the shadows behind the door. Then they set off once more.

A trio of guards stood together near the main entrance, chatting about recent Quidditch games. The wolf led Padfoot past them, down a short corridor, and through an unguarded service entrance used for food delivery. They picked up the pace at that point, hurrying down the rocky slopes towards the water.

Padfoot whined as he saw the wolf leap off a short cliff into the waves, but didn’t hesitate in doing the same. The biting, bitter cold felt _awful_ , like the sea itself wanted to punish him for daring to try and escape. Terrified he might yet drown, so close to getting finally _out,_ Padfoot paddled for all he was worth. Choppy waves continually crashed over his head, but each time he bobbed back to the surface, that honey brown fur remained within sight, just ahead. Padfoot lost track of how long they’d been in the water; he paid no attention to direction. There was only himself, the sea, and the savior leading him onwards.

_Going to make it, going to make it, HAVE to make it..._

The sudden sensation of solid rocks beneath his claws couldn’t have been more welcome. Soaked to the bone, Padfoot forced himself to clamber up, taking one last hit from the vengeful waves before getting clear. The wolf waited for him, equally drenched, but somehow didn’t appear as pitiful as Padfoot knew he himself looked. Once those amber eyes were satisfied he’d caught up, the wolf turned and led him towards the cliffs.

Hoping desperately they were headed for some kind of shelter from the biting wind, Padfoot stumbled when the wolf disappeared into solid stone. He whined; a wet tail flicked back towards him, coming out of the cliffside. Cautious, Padfoot edged closer, until his own nose passed through the illusion.

Merlin-blessed _warmth_ met him, and in moments the dog shoved himself fully inside, basking in a sensation he’d not experienced in _years._ The wolf huffed, before shaking off excess water and stepping over to a ready-made pallet of wool blankets and felt covers. Padfoot did the same, curling up beside his savior, soon dropping into an exhausted sleep.

-HP-

_Warm. Dry. Quiet-_ A soft, metallic tap, caused Padfoot to peel his eyes open. The dog yawned, fully stretched, and wound up sitting on his haunches. On the other side of the pallet, a tired looking young man with honey brown hair and a soft blanket pulled around his shoulders smiled. “Morning, Padfoot.”

Blinking, the dog watched him for a few minutes, stirring some rapidly cooking scrambled eggs in a flat pan atop the campfire. Right as the stranger started portioning out the eggs into a couple of bowls along with toasted bread, he shifted. “Who are you?” Sirius asked.

“Family,” the young man answered, handing over one of the bowls. “Have to make do with your fingers, I’m afraid. My name’s Teddy.”

Warily, Sirius accepted the food and scarfed it down. As soon as he’d cleared the bowl, he set it aside - and lifted his wand. Didn’t point it at the young man just yet, but made sure it was plainly visible.

Teddy shot him a wry smile. “Don’t suppose you’d mind waiting to hex me until I’ve got some trousers on?”

“Answers first,” Sirius said. “I don’t have much reason to trust family, you understand.”

“Of course. Most of them would curse you as soon as talk to you, I expect. Although, there is your cousin Andromeda, and her daughter Nymphadora. And a bit more distantly, you’ve got Harry.”

A place inside of Sirius ached. “Harry?”

“Mm-hm. I’m here on his behalf, really.”

“Why?”

“Because,” Teddy answered almost idly, “The muggle relatives Dumbledore stuck him with are bloody inadequate caregivers, and he deserves better than sleeping in a cupboard all the damn time.

That ache turned into something hotter. _“Cupboard?”_

“Yep. They moved him into his cousin’s ‘second bedroom’ once the Hogwarts letter came, addressed to the Cupboard Under the Stairs, but I didn’t feel inclined to leave him there regardless.” Sirius snarled in agreement. “He’s at Hogwarts now, of course, and before that I kept him at the Kiln with me through August.”

The name took a moment to recall. “The Potter Sanctuary?”

“Yep. You know about it?”

“James-” Piercing pain, guilt, _grief-_ “When we were talking about them going into hiding, he mentioned it. Last resort. Dumbledore offered his old place in Godric’s Hollow instead.”

“They’d have been better off in seclusion,” Teddy muttered darkly. Sirius couldn’t help but agree. Then the significance of the place registered.

“You’re a Potter?” Couldn’t be. James had been the last - his uncle Charlus didn’t have kids, nor his great-aunt Elizabeth, and the only cousins all died out decades beforehand...

“Not by blood,” came his answer. “I had a key. In point of fact, I’m actually more closely related to you - which is why I’m hoping you’ll let me take you back to Grimmauld Place.”

Sirius couldn’t help but grimace. “There’s- nowhere else?”

“None as convenient, or as protected,” Teddy replied, an apology obvious in his tone. “The Kiln won’t let you in without a key of your own, and I don’t fancy trying to get a muggle apartment up to my standards with what little time we’ve got before your escape is discovered.”

“Right,” the older man sighed. “Right.”

“If it helps, you could name me Steward for your recovery period, and I’ll handle all the clean up.”

Sirius looked up sharply. “That’s, dangerous. The Old Hearths...”

“I know the stories, and I’ve heard all the warnings. But honestly, I think the house might respond better to me than you, even at your best.”

A barked laugh. “Yeah, that’d probably be the case with just about anybody.” The more Sirius thought about it, the more he had to agree. Old Hearths, magical households lived in by generations upon generations of wizards and witches, tended to develop minds of their own. Their bloodright Lords and Ladies would be obeyed regardless, but things could become, _difficult,_ if there was a particularly abrasive personality clash. “Think you’ve really got what it takes?”

Teddy’s friendly demeanor abruptly changed. His grin became a touch too wide, his head tilted a fraction as his eyes gleamed. He went from a quietly cheerful fellow to something _other,_ something _dangerous._ Suddenly, Sirius didn’t doubt he could get Number 12 Grimmauld Place to obey his commands.

-HP-

“Bloody hell, I hate this place,” Sirius grumbled, as he and Teddy crossed the street to his childhood home. Both wore clothes brought in the younger man’s knapsack, and Sirius was freshly shaved for the first time in ten years.

“Let’s see about making some new memories, then,” his companion replied, coming to a stop on the doorstep. “This should be good enough.”

Nodding, Sirius raised his wand, tapping thrice against his own forehead, then both of Teddy’s shoulders and the spot above his heart. “I, Sirius Orion Black, Lord of the Most Ancient and Noble House of Black, Tender of the Old Hearth Below and Minder of the Grey Skies Above, do announce my intention to take on a Steward in this time of personal recovery.”

The door before them seemed to shiver.

Teddy took a deep breath, locking eyes with Sirius. He’d promised, before they left the cliffside cave, to explain everything once absolute privacy could be ensured. “I, Edward Remus Lupin, Member of the Most Ancient and Noble House of Black and Ward of the Ancient and Noble House of Potter, do accept this title of Steward, and solemnly swear to return it to my Lord upon his request.”

Sirius felt his jaw drop.

The door shivered again, and then it creaked, almost invitingly. Teddy placed his wand just below the knocker, and the great slab of wood swung open. He stepped inside, and Sirius, feeling ironically reminded of their departure from Azkaban, trailed after.

Dust coated everything. A pallor of grim darkness filled the front, which made him shudder, being far too reminiscent of the magical prison. Teddy grumbled something about being right that Sirius didn’t entirely catch, before raising his voice. “Kreacher!”

A few moments later, the bitter old house elf appeared. He sneered at both men, mouth opening to no doubt deliver some slew of insults, but Teddy cut him off before he could even start.

“Bring me the locket Regulus Black ordered you to destroy, Kreacher.”

A pause. The elf blinked, and popped away. Sirius frowned.

Before he could ask _what locket,_ or _who in Merlin’s name ARE you_ for that matter, Kreacher reappeared, holding something out with both hands. Teddy nodded. “Just set it down on the floor, there.”

Sirius leaned to one side to get a better look, as his companion pulled something out of one his coat’s dozens of pockets. “What, exactly, is that?”

“One of Voldemort’s horcruxes,” Teddy answered. “And _this,_ is a basilisk fang.” With that, he drove the length of pale yellow ivory downwards, spearing the locket clear through. A high-pitched, agonized scream rose up, _just like the ones in Azkaban,_ causing Sirius to stumble back and collapse against the closed door. Kreacher wailed as well, clutching at his ears; Teddy winced, but didn’t move from where he crouched, firmly keeping the fang embedded. Thick, oily smoke shot upwards, almost frantic, before both it and the scream faded to nothing.

Sirius stared. Kreacher stared. Teddy slowly rose to his feet. “Well then. One down, five to go.”


	6. Clearing the Air

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Slowly, Sirius nodded. “Things like that locket you stabbed upstairs. You said- five more?”
> 
> “Yep. Five more items keeping Voldemort’s soul anchored to this plane, plus a sixth that’ll take some careful handling. I know where they all are, and I’ve got some tricks up my sleeve to get at them.” Teddy paused to take a sip of tea. “I know where Pettigrew is too.”

Remarkably subdued by the scene with the locket, Kreacher had obeyed Teddy’s request to remain in his den for the afternoon without argument. Sirius, likewise, followed him down into the kitchen in a daze, not speaking as Teddy set about using his own supplies to fix them a pot of tea and some cold cut sandwiches.

Food and drinks set out, the young man took a seat opposite his cousin. “Alright. Do you want to ask questions, or shall I start from the beginning?”

Sirius finally stirred, dark grey eyes glancing up. “...pretty sure my biggest question is who the bloody hell are you, and somehow I think you’ll cover the rest just by explaining _that.”_

Teddy couldn’t help a slight grin. “Pretty much. Alright, then, guess I should start with a question of my own - you know that little kid song about spinning stars?”

The older man frowned, clearly baffled by the non sequitur. Teddy decided to help him out, humming the tune and then singing softly:

_“Count the stars and see them spin, see them spin, see them spin,  
Count the stars and see them spin, on through the path of time~  
Listen well to those who step, those who step, those who step,  
Listen well to those who step, between the stars that chime~”_

“I do remember that one,” Sirius murmured. “Had about a dozen verses, getting more and more painful along the way.”

Teddy snickered. “Especially if you’re a parent listening to high-pitched, off-tune little kids singing it, right?”

“Merlin forbid...” The spark of humor faded, though, as Sirius returned to the matter at hand. “Still doesn’t explain who you are.”

“Doesn’t it? Not even the verse about accepting the warnings of those who step back through time?”

“No, that-” the older man abruptly cut himself off, squinting intently at Teddy. “...no. Can’t be.”

He smiled. “My name really is Teddy Lupin. I was born on April twelfth, in the year nineteen ninety-eight. My parents were Remus Lupin and Nymphadora Tonks, and my godfather was Harry Potter.”

Sirius looked to be in danger of falling off his bench seat. “Bloody hell.”

The smile grew wider. “Is that anyway to greet your god-grandchild, Uncle Padfoot?”

“It is when he’s apparently a bloody _time traveller,”_ the other bit back, rubbing at his face. “Merlin’s soggy bollocks, now I _know_ I’ve gone mad.”

“Nah,” Teddy commented, “Just a bit touched in the head. A shop’s worth of chocolate and some time spent away from all things Dark ought to set you straight before too long.”

“What are we doing _here,_ then?”

“Setting up a new headquarters for the Order of the Phoenix.” Sirius looked up sharply. “With any luck, I’ll be able to take care of certain things without it being needed, but I’m also in the habit of having back-ups prepared ahead of time, just in case.”

Slowly, the older man nodded. “Certain things like that locket you stabbed upstairs. You said- five more?”

“Yep. Five more items keeping Voldemort’s soul anchored to this plane, plus a sixth that’ll take some careful handling. I know where they all are, and I’ve got some tricks up my sleeve to get at them.” Teddy paused to take a sip of tea. “I know where Pettigrew is too.”

Sirius, who’d glanced down at the sandwich still sitting untouched before him, suddenly snapped straight up and _growled. “Where-?”_

“Not telling.”

“You-!” In a moment, the half-mad wizard had stood, one hand braced against the tabletop, the other holding his wand in a white-knuckled grip. “You don’t understand, I have to-!”

“To what? Run off half-cocked and bugger everything up again?” Teddy set his cup down with a sharp click. “Padfoot. I will get him, I swear. You’ll get your day in court. And then you’ll apply for legal custody of Harry, so he won’t ever have to go back to the muggle relatives I rescued him from. If you _don’t_ wait, if you transform and run off, the rat will get away again and you’ll be forced to remain in hiding for the rest of your life.”

Something in his steady glare must’ve gotten through, because after a beat, Sirius sagged in place. “...the rest of my life. And how long is that, exactly?”

Teddy kept his tone quiet, but steely. “Tad less than five years, if I can’t make enough changes.”

And that knowledge, evidently, was enough to tip the older man into sitting back down, eyes closed. “Fuck. How?”

“Bellatrix Lestrange got in a lucky shot. She and a bunch of other Death Eaters were set loose from Azkaban the year before, after Pettigrew resurrected Voldemort - _that,_ at least, I can already promise won’t happen.”

“Because you’re going to stab all the Dark Git’s horcruxes?”

“Yes. But also because I’ve got his proper shade locked up in a warded and buried trunk, where it can’t do any harm. And then there’s the fact I'm making arrangements to take Pettigrew out of the equation - by end of this month, probably, if not sooner.”

Sirius seemed to war with himself for a minute, before his shoulders slumped. “Alright. Fine. I won’t go after the bastard.”

“Good. I’m still not telling you were he is, though.” That dry remark earned a snort. “Now tuck in already, you’re skin and bones enough as it is.”

-HP-

_Most Esteemed Messrs Weasley,_

_I’m grateful you saw fit to reply to my previous correspondence, and very pleased at your success in locating the Room of Requirement. Once I’ve had a chance to settle some other business, we’ll see if I can’t get two of the Map’s original creators to show you some of their better tricks and trade secrets._

_Now then, since you’ve deigned to trust me, I’ll actually explain the favor I requested in my original letter: check the Map some evening after the first year boys have gone to bed. Ten to one odds, you’ll see a name in their dorm room that belongs to someone who shouldn’t be alive, probably in close proximity to your younger brother. Scabbers, unfortunately, is not what he seems to be._

_If the two of you were able to get ahold of him, preferably without the rat being aware of your intentions, I would be forever in your debt. Deliver him to Professor Lupin - he’ll be able to recognize the little bastard, and handle him appropriately as well. And in return, a finder’s fee of two thousand galleons, which I can arrange to go into a Gringotts vault set up in your names, or be anonymously transferred to your parents - or perhaps half and half, if that better suits._

_Much obliged,_

_Moony’s friend who Steps Between Stars_

_P.S. Would you be willing to pile Harry Potter with extra food whenever you might see him at mealtimes? The kid’s skin and bones as it is, and I’ll bet ten knuts he still isn’t eating enough. Thanks._

-HP-

After stuffing as much food, tea, and chocolate into Sirius as he could manage, Teddy got Kreacher to help clean up the man’s old bedroom and settle him for a nap. Then, when it was just the two of them back in the kitchen, he stared down the crotchety old elf.

“How long have you been with the Black Family, Kreacher?” Teddy finally asked.

“All his life, Kreacher has served the House of Black,” the elf grumbled in reply. “Born in the attic he was, yes, over one hundred and sixty years ago, when Master Nigellus and Mistress Nimeria were preparing to wed.”

Phineas Nigellus Black’s parents, Teddy recalled - they would’ve been a generation above Elizabeth Potter.

“And what did this place look like in Nigellus and Nimeria’s time, Kreacher? Certainly less dusty, I’m sure.” An uneasy croak answered him. “Probably more light in halls, as well. An indoor greenhouse, or so I’ve heard. Rooms that still expanded as needed to accompany guests, parties every spring season, relations coming to visit throughout the year...”

“Low, the House of Black has fallen,” Kreacher whimpered, “Oh, how Mistress would weep - lost and scattered, the children of House Black, and all has fallen to ruin! Blood traitors who never cared for the family, no, never cared for poor Mistress and her heart-”

Teddy let him continue to rant for a few minutes more, just to get as much of it out of his system as possible. “Enough, Kreacher.”

The elf fell silent.

“Sirius has no desire to be the Master of this house, and we both know it.” The walls around them rattled ominously, and Teddy added, “We _all_ know it. So, in the time I have as his Steward, we need to get as much fixed up as possible. Because, Kreacher-” He leaned forward just a tad, eyes gleaming. “The House of Black is _not_ going to remain fallen forever.”

Ragged ears flapped hopefully.

-HP-

_Auror Moody,_

_You don’t know me. You have no reason to trust me. But I’m asking in the name of James Potter for you to hear me out._

_Peter Pettigrew is alive. He was the Secret Keeper to betray the Potters and frame Sirius Black for it, and he’s at Hogwarts right now: a rat Animagus hiding in plain sight as a student’s pet. With any luck, by this time he’s been caught and handed over to the new Defense Professor, Remus Lupin, with whom I believe you’re acquainted thanks to a certain Order. I warned him not to approach Dumbledore just yet, but to wait for contact from you, because even a Phoenix can become too convinced of their own infallibility._

_I have no idea if you’ve been involved in the matter of Black’s departure from Azkaban or not, but you should know regardless that I was the one to sneak in and slip him out. Call it a well-intentioned kidnapping, as I knew beforehand of his innocence, and the absolute surety of not being able to prove a damn thing without Pettigrew in custody. The key was taken and replaced; the box of his belongings was not._

_I was also the one who looked after Harry Potter for the month of August, and delivered him - safely, I might add - to the Express on September First. It wouldn’t have happened if the muggle family he previously lived with treated him as an actual child rather than a house elf to order around. Feel free to go interview them about it, and check the cupboard under the stairs while you’re there - should still be a taped-up sign proclaiming it to be “Harry’s Room”._

_Neither of us is going to feel trusting enough to arrange a face to face meeting any time soon, so let’s both do ourselves a favor and not even bother bringing it up. If you feel inclined to write to me after Pettigrew is in your custody, I would be grateful for the relief of knowing he’s being kept under lock and key._

_All due vigilance,_

_One Who Steps Between Stars_

_P.S. Pass along my well wishes to Nymphadora Tonks, will you? She doesn’t know me either, but we are family, and I know she’ll pass the final Auror Examinations with flying colors this spring._

-HP-

Teddy met Sirius outside the bathroom the next morning, grinning cheerfully after a warm shower. “Sleep well, Padfoot?”

The older man didn’t answer him, still staring at the dust-free and brightly polished wood of the banister and stairs. Then his gaze shifted to the new wallpaper, a pale cream covered in gently waving vines painted in half a dozen shades of green, dotted occasionally with yellow flowers and golden thorns. Brass doorknobs gleamed, every floorboard just as polished as the stairway. Above their heads, a hanging lamp glowed with multiple miniature spots of light, as if a host of fireflies were living inside. Sirius finally turned his stunned expression towards Teddy. “Did we move to another house while I was asleep?”

He snickered. “No, I just managed to stir Kreacher into something of a cleaning frenzy. Probably woke up the Hearth while I was about it, too. Now go on, take a shower and get yourself sorted, we’ll be having breakfast in the drawing room soon.”

Sirius mumbled something about sheer madness under his breath as he disappeared into the bathroom. Teddy’s grin widened, and as soon as the door was shut, he rested a hand against the wall. “Don’t know what his problem is - I’m sure you’ve always been a perfectly lovely house; not your fault certain people equate all darkness with evil.”

Beneath his fingers, painted vines and flowers danced.

-HP-

_Dear Arthur Weasley,_

_Your children are in danger. Not this minute, and not even this year for most of them, but the Dark Lord isn’t fully dead and the Order of the Phoenix may yet be called into service once more. If and when that happens, your younger sons and daughter will be swept up into a war they cannot outrun._

_I am doing what I can to derail certain plans and change particular events, but some things I will need help with - and some warnings need to be delivered in person. I’ll be at the Leaky Cauldron this Wednesday night from seven to ten. Please, come. I promise to explain everything I can when you arrive; ask Tom for Edward Astra’s room._

_If you’re concerned about this being a trap of some sorts, one: I don’t blame you. Two, that Hogwarts toilet seat the twins swiped for Ginny should’ve arrived by now. Three, ask Alastor Moody about the letter I sent him yesterday._

_Earnestly yours,_

_One Who Steps Between Stars_

_P.S. I’ll be happy to talk to Molly as well, but only once I’ve convinced you to stand as a buffer for me. She’s not going to like what I have to say anymore than you will, but from her I’m a lot more nervous about becoming collateral damage._

-HP-

“Right,” Teddy announced, as he and Sirius finished eating a rather pleasant breakfast. “What do you say we go take a look at Clay Lane this morning?”

The older wizard blinked at him, before a dejected expression overcame his face. “I’d rather not. I was there right after Potter Manor burned down, and I doubt a layer of weeds has improved the view.”

“Well, _we’ll_ just have to improve it instead, then. Or would you prefer to remain inside your ancestral family home all day?” Sirius grimaced at that, and nodded, though the room around them darkened a bit as he did so.

Teddy sent him on upstairs to get dressed for their outing, and once more rested a hand against the wall. Emerald green plaster shot through with veins of gold seemed almost to pulse at his touch. “I know, I know, but don’t take it to heart. He’s probably more of a country manor than a townhouse sort of person anyway. Kreacher?” A quiet pop drew his gaze downwards. “Is that picnic basket I asked for ready?”

“Ready and waiting, Master Steward,” the elf grumbled. “Ready and waiting for an ungrateful Master, so unhappy to be in the House of Black...”

“Some people have a funny habit of holding onto unhappy memories,” Teddy idly replied, refusing to let himself think of a dark muggle alley, the flash of an arriving Portkey, _the Cutting Curse shouted in three separate voices-_ “Anyway. You’re going to have to deal with him yourself tonight while I’m out to handle some business, and I expect you to avoid getting into an argument with the man, alright? If he tries to antagonize you or says things you’d rather not hear, go do something else until he settles. Understood?”

“Yes, Master Steward.” Thumping steps on the stairs caused the elf to scowl, but Kreacher just disapparated away before Sirius could enter the room, settling his new jacket.

“Right,” the older wizard said grimly. “Clay Lane, here we come.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Keep your fingers crossed I have a chance to get some serious writing time this week, folks, because this is the last of my pre-written chapters for Gradus Inter Astra, and I haven't been able to do more than scribble down a few paragraphs for the next update 8(
> 
> That said, I've recently been exposed to the existence of cursed child Delphini, and the idea came to me of an AU where Harry delivers her Hogwarts acceptance letter at age eleven - would anyone be interested in such a thing if I actually wrote about it?


	7. Where Is Your Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “So, what, you figure we’ll get some lumber and slap up a house?” Hands yanked out of his pockets, Sirius flung his arms out wide, gesturing to the overgrown field around them. “There’s a bloody good reason people don’t rebuild on top of magical ruins, mate! Even when they’ve been cracked and killed, Old Hearths don’t take kindly to it! We’d be inviting all kinds of nastiness to put something new on top of what’s been Potter land for centuries-”
> 
> “What makes you think the Hearth is dead?” Teddy asked idly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one's dedicated to Mystic Magic 88! Apparently birthday requests work quite well as motivation, I gotta remember that one. Although you might not think it's such a good present when the ending arrives... ah well. Next update will be next Saturday!
> 
> The song snippets are from Vagabond (feat. Fjora), and Rise Up by Clear Blue Fire, two of my current faves that felt oddly appropriate to Teddy's current circumstances. Enjoy!
> 
> -Tri

The ancestral home of the Ancient and Noble House of Potter was, quite frankly, a dump.

Not through any fault of its own, of course, but by way of having been burned to the ground nearly fourteen years previously, the blackened rubble still lying scattered around a field of knee-high grass and stubby shrubs. One pile of bricks looked to be the remnants of a chimney; a few shattered slabs of stone might have once been the front steps. Further afield, a cluster of ivy-covered logs were just visible, propped up against one another, which caused Sirius to sigh when he spotted them.

“The family had a brilliant Quidditch pitch,” he explained, at Teddy’s raised eyebrow. “James and I must have spent half the summer between sixth and seventh year out on it.” Hands fisted in his pockets, the older wizard looked abjectly miserable, standing in the middle of what had once been his best friend’s childhood home.

“Well, let’s focus on the house first, and see if we can have the pitch back up by the time Harry’s ready to come out next summer,” Teddy offered. He got an odd look in return. “What?”

“Don’t know much about magical construction, do you?” Sirius asked dryly.

“More than you’d think.” Years of watching the Burrow expand again and again to host a dozen grandchildren and their extra family members had seen to that aspect of his education.

“So, what, you figure we’ll get some lumber and slap up a house?” Hands yanked out of his pockets, Sirius flung his arms out wide, gesturing to the overgrown field around them. “There’s a bloody good reason people don’t rebuild on top of magical ruins, mate! Even when they’ve been cracked and killed, Old Hearths don’t take kindly to it! We’d be inviting all kinds of nastiness to put something new on top of what’s been Potter land for centuries-”

“What makes you think the Hearth is dead?” Teddy asked idly.

Caught off guard, Sirius paused mid-gesture, mouth hanging open in surprise. He shook it off after a moment, extreme skepticism taking the lead with his expression. “Be serious, Ted; what part of this place indicates any aspect of it is still alive?”

“I’m not Sirius, you are,” the young man smirked. “And you’re just not looking in the right place.” That said, he turned to hop over the broken remains of a wall, and strode straight towards the nearest boundary of the property. It took a minute, but soon enough came the sounds of Sirius tromping after him through the grass.

Despite being untended for several years, the treeline remained more or less in place, and Teddy was able to follow it to a Cornerstone. Blackened cracks ran across its surface, distorting the carved runes and sigils beyond recognition, but at the very top there remained a narrow opening, just barely longer than the width of his thumb.

“Right, brilliant,” Sirius panted as he arrived, looking unhealthily pale even in the mid-morning sunlight. “You found proper evidence of every single protective ward getting knocked off when the Dark Git attacked this place with ruddy Fiendfyre.”

Teddy just grinned, pulling from one of his inner pockets a tiny, golden key. Sirius blinked at the sight of it.

“A side benefit of staying at the Kiln,” the younger man commented, as he inserted the key into the opening at the top of the Cornerstone, “Is that Elizabeth Potter’s portrait shares all sorts of useful tidbits.”

When he turned the delicate ring of metal, the entire chunk of rock rumbled, and slowly, a section of ground immediately beside it began to descend into the earth. By the time Teddy got back to his feet and dusted off his hands, a stone stairway yawned before them. He nudged the gobsmacked Sirius with his elbow.

“Ready for a bit of exploring?”

-HP-

As Teddy had suggested, the Old Hearth of Potter Manor was very much _not_ dead, and in fact had not only survived the destruction of the house above, but managed to preserve nearly the entirety of the basement, wine cellar, and dungeon turned storage space. And, for that matter, the secret tunnel leading out to the northern Cornerstone, through which Teddy and Sirius were able to enter.

When they’d settled onto a couple of dusty armchairs, the younger wizard attempted to explain. “As I understand it, Eugenia and Fleamont Potter were asleep when the attack began, and probably died before they could properly wake up. With James off at school and no one else to protect, the Hearth retreated, sealing off the basement entrance and dropping everything further into the bedrock, where Fiendfyre and whatever else the Death Eaters used couldn’t reach.”

“And here it’s all stayed,” Sirius murmured, still staring around the room with wide eyes. In front of them, the wide stone fireplace bearing the crest of House Potter, which had flared to life with their arrival, seemed almost to rumble smugly.

“So, to correct your earlier misgivings, our tasks are as follows-” Teddy held out a hand to start counting off his fingers. “Restore the connection between basement and ground floor, giving us an easier entrance to come through; start putting up proper walls and floors again, so the Hearth has a skeleton to work with; dig out the old stone carving tools to make new Cornerstones to carry fresh wards; and go hunting for any of the old family journals or spellbooks that might be hidden here rather than Gringotts.”

“Bloody hell- you’ve planned it all out, haven’t you?”

Teddy shrugged. “Not this bit, so much, compared to other things. My Harry figured out a fair amount of this on his own, when I was a kid, so all we’re really doing is copy-catting him.”

“...how’d he turn out?” Sirius asked softly.

“Brilliant,” Teddy answered, without even needing to think about it. “Couldn’t stand being famous, or anyone trying to get him to talk about Voldemort or any of that stuff, but he loved it when people just wanted a regular conversation, or to talk about Quidditch or whatever.”

“He plays?”

“Yep. Any day now, I expect to hear about how he’s been made the new Gryffindor team Seeker.”

Sirius blinked several times. “As a first year?!”

“Mmhm! There was an incident at his first flying class, and Professor McGonagall saw him pull off this mad dive to catch a friend’s Remembrall, and she took him straight to the team captain - even got him a brand new Nimbus Two Thousand as a gift, though she never actually confirmed that, of course.”

“Of course,” Sirius echoed, still looking stunned but with a growing smile on his face. “He must be a natural then, right?”

“Sure is. We weren’t able to do much inside the Kiln’s boundaries, but I was able to give him a bit of time on my Zephyr - barely needed to tell him how to sit or grip or anything, he just got it straight off. Here-” Teddy fumbled for his inner breast pocket, and retrieved his small bundle. Quickly unwrapping the protective cloth, he gently grasped the photograph of Harry on the broom at the Kiln to offer it over. Sirius accepted the square with equal care, and just stared at it for several silent minutes.

“...he looks just like James,” the man finally whispered.

“But with Lily’s eyes,” Teddy agreed, mouth quirked up in a fond smirk. “Do yourself a favor, though, and avoid saying that right off the bat when you meet him, because he hears it from _so many_ people over the years.”

“What-” Sirius cleared his throat. “What would you suggest I say, then?”

The younger man’s smile softened. “Be honest. Tell him how much you’ve missed him. That you want to be part of his life from now on. That you’d love to go flying with him as much as he wants.”

Slowly nodded, Sirius took one last look at the moving photo before carefully handing it back. As Teddy accepted it, however, his other hand tipped, accidentally granting the barest glimpse of his older picture. “What’s that?”

Pausing, Teddy considered his family’s photograph. And then, without preamble, he turned it around to properly share.

It took a moment for Sirius to understand what he was looking at. Then his eyebrows near about shot up off his face, and he lifted his awed gaze to stare at Teddy. “That’s- is that-?”

“My Harry, and his kids - all four of us,” he replied sadly. Sirius looked back down at the photo. One hand came up to grasp at his face, as the other lifted to hover over the picture with its happily laughing group.

After a pause, he coughed, hands lowering back down. “So, what? Did you get to dye your hair as a kid?” When he glanced up again, the man jumped, because Teddy had willed his hair to change from its usual honey brown to the bright teal of his childhood. “Bloody hell-”

“I did say your cousin Nymphadora was my mum, right?”

“Bugger,” Sirius laughed. “You’re a Metamorphmagus and a werewolf?”

“Makes for a surprisingly good combination,” Teddy grinned, finally wrapping the photos back up to tuck away. “I’ve always been able to hold my colors and shapes more easily than Mum did growing up, according to Gran, and I get over full moons faster, since my bones and tissues are better adapted to changing.”

“Huh.” The older wizard watched, eyes going a bit distant, as the bundle of photographs disappeared into their pocket. “...what did he name them? Or, will name them, I suppose.”

“Nah-ah, I’m not telling you that, you’ll get a swelled head.”

It took a moment for that to sink in, before Sirius blinked and his eyes lit up. “He named one after me?”

“Didn’t I just say I’m not telling?”

“Oh come on-”

“They might not even be the same next time around-!”

“-couldn’t hurt, could it?”

Standing with a laugh, Teddy started heading for the tunnel exit, Sirius continuing to wheedle as he followed. By the time they reached the stairs leading up to the Cornerstone, the young man gave in. “Alright, alright! Will you leave me alone about the younger two if I say what he named his eldest?” Sirius put on his most earnest expression, which Teddy knew better than to trust. Even so, he shook his head with a grin, and went on: “James Sirius Potter.”

That earnest look turned immediately pleased, even as Sirius needed to blink back tears. “That- that’s perfect. Did he really?”

“Mmhm. And it was perfectly fitting, too, since the little blighter went on to become one of the worst pranksters to terrorize Hogwarts since the Weasley twins graduated, and the Marauders before them.”

Sirius cackled all the way back to Grimmauld Place.

-HP-

When Teddy entered the Leaky Cauldron that evening, he’d put his Metamorphmagus abilities to good use, becoming short and stout rather than tall and lanky, with light blonde hair that curled around his face, plain hazel eyes and a light smattering of freckles. He checked in with Tom as Edward Astra, mentioned he expected company later in the evening, and retired upstairs to room number two oh three.

And then he waited.

Six-thirty became seven. Seven became eight. Eight turned into nine. With the room shielded by as many privacy wards as Teddy could think of, and distracting himself with a book or card game out of the question, he instead played music. Slow, constant twirls of his wand emitted a soft, reddish-golden glow, and a familiar voice sang.

_“~Where is your home, vagabond?  
Where do you go when you don’t belong?  
Head held high but your soul is down,  
Where is your home, vagabond~?_

_Endlessly lost from dusk till dawn,  
Orphan before you were ever young,  
By crawl lights lead you on and on  
Breathing in worlds that you don’t belong~_

_Where, is your home, vagabond?  
Where, do you go when it all is done?  
Can’t put down roots, ‘cause they won’t last long,  
Everything here, will all be gone-”_

Teddy cut off the song, mentally apologizing to Victoire as he did so. There had been evenings, the two of them curled up together, where it was soothing to listen to her sing those particular lyrics. Alone, however, and years from where he was supposed to be, they moved from bittersweet to just plain bitter.

After a minute spent in silence, repeatedly tapping his fingers against his thigh, the young man resumed twirling his wand, and the glow returned, with different music: a faster beat, the words carried by echoing, vibrant notes.

_“~We can be fearless, we can be bold,  
We can be brave we can be the unknown,  
We can be the wild ones, heroes of the world,  
We can share the message of the lessons that we learned~!_

_We can go our own way, we can be the new day,  
Coming up strong, who-oa, gonna_

_Rise up, no stopping us now,  
We’re taking on the world!  
Gonna rise up, no stopping us now,  
Who-oa, who-o-o-!”_

A knock.

Teddy hastily cleared away the music spell, straightened his robes as he stood, and schooled his face into an expression of pleased neutrality. Then, he crossed to the door, and lifted his wand in order to use a one way see-through spell to check that Arthur had come alone.

The panels of wood exploded inward before he got the chance.


	8. Delighted to Meet You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “I _only_ asked you here to make certain it wasn’t a _trap,”_ Arthur Weasley hissed, wand already moving to gather up the scattered and splintered pieces of door. “Not to blow the man apart before we had a chance to hear him out!”
> 
> “He was going to cast a spell at the door,” Moody grumbled back, still in an offensive stance, his good eye trained on Teddy.

_Teddy crossed to the door, and lifted his wand in order to use a one way see-through spell to check that Arthur had come alone._

_The panels of wood exploded inward before he got the chance._

“Fuck-!” Teddy flung himself to the floor, avoiding the shattered wood flying through the air. He kept rolling with the movement, too, and thankfully didn’t get hit by shrapnel or the pair of spells that filled the space he’d previously been. Without even looking, the young man fired off his own quick succession of return fire: “Expelliarmus! Stupefy! Incarcerous!”

“Protego!” A harsh voice barked, and Teddy took the momentary reprieve to get to his feet. He only managed a brief glimpse of his attacker, already through the doorway into the room, before diving behind the four-poster bed, flinging more spells all the while.

The two of them kept at it for what could’ve been another minute or merely ten seconds - Teddy didn’t keep track, adrenaline roaring, the memory of Ginny’s fierce commands in his ears: _faster, Ted! Don’t let down for a second! Keep moving, find cover, don’t rely on shield spells, put something heavy in between you and your opponent-!_

“ALASTOR, KNOCK IT OFF! PROTEGO!” A new voice shouted, and a bright shield snapped into place evenly between the pair. Grateful for the help, but unwilling to take his eyes off his attacker, Teddy took the opportunity to actually study the man opposite him: wide stature, thinning hair, multiple scars, plain clothes under a dragonhide overcoat, magically moving blue eye-

It took a great deal of self control not to suddenly blurt out Mad-Eye Moody’s name in surprise, but Teddy managed. He’d only ever seen a couple of photographs of the man, but there was no mistaking that face or its accessory.

As for the other person striding into the room...

“I _only_ asked you here to make certain it wasn’t a _trap,”_ Arthur Weasley hissed, wand already moving to gather up the scattered and splintered pieces of door. “Not to blow the man apart before we had a chance to hear him out!”

“He was going to cast a spell at the door,” Moody grumbled back, still in an offensive stance, his good eye trained on Teddy.

“To _look through it,”_ the young man complained. “Not everyone has an enchanted eyeball that lets them automatically see through doors, thank you very much.”

“Hrmph.”

“What in buggering hell happened here?” Yet another new voice came through the open doorway, swiftly followed by a young woman with brightly colored hair cut in a short fringe. “Wait, no, nevermind, I don’t want to know. Mad-Eye, you’d better have a good explanation for Mister Tolman when he sees this mess.”

The grizzled old auror grumbled something in response, but Teddy didn’t bother trying to catch it, seeing as he had enough of his plate just trying to breathe. His mum turned towards him, looking the young man up and down before moving closer.

“Wotcher,” she said, holding out a hand. “You don’t look like any family I’ve ever seen, but it’s nice to meet you anyway, I suppose. I’m Tonks.”

“...wotcher yourself,” Teddy managed to reply, accepting her handshake. “I’m- Edward.”

“Yeah, the time traveler Who Steps Between Stars, whose letters have gone and made this bloke-” she tilted her head towards Moody, caught up in arguing with Arthur, “-even more bloody paranoid than usual, which _I’ve_ had to deal with. Thanks for that.”

“Anytime,” he forced himself to chuckle. Shaking off his shock, Teddy took a moment to cast an illusion of a new door, so at least no one could look into the room as they walked by. Then he conjured a couple more chairs, and returned to the one he’d been in before, slumping down with a huff. “Well, that was more excitement than I needed this evening.”

Moody glared at him, ignoring the chairs in favor of planting his feet by the wall. Arthur just sighed, and settled into the one straight across from Teddy. Tonks dithered for a moment, glancing at her mentor, before shrugging and dropping into a chair herself.

“Right then,” Arthur started. “Who are you, what do you want, and how did you know about Scabbers secretly being Peter Pettigrew?”

-HP-

_“I always get the feeling Percy doesn’t like to think about it,” Ron told him, as Teddy stared at a picture of his much younger god-uncle, a fat rat missing a toe balanced on one shoulder. “I mean,_ I _don’t like thinking about it, and I only had Scabbers for a few years. He was Percy’s pet for almost a decade, even before Hogwarts - and then to find out that, the whole time, he was secretly an animagus who’d murdered people? Bloody creepy. I’m glad the git’s dead now.”_

_“But he used to be one of my dad’s friends, right? In school?”_

_“Yeah. That’s the flip side of knowing people can always change, Ted; sometimes, they don’t change for the better.”_

-HP-

“Gonna have to stick with the pseudonym names for now, I’m afraid,” Teddy apologized. “Only one person is fully aware of who I am right now, and even that much is dangerous. I know about Pettigrew only thanks to stories, from those who dealt with him being revealed the first time around, and I'd rather avoid the rat bastard escaping justice again. As for what I want, that's easy: to keep a great deal of people I didn’t grow up with from dying.”

Arthur paled, Tonks frowned, and Moody let out a deep _harrumph._ “You really expect us to believe that?” The old auror demanded. “To just accept you’ve come back in time from years in the future?”

“Twenty-eight years, to be precise. And I hardly expect _you_ of all people to just accept it, so go ahead and ask whatever you’d like. CONSTANT VIGILANCE!”

Both Arthur and Tonks jumped at his unexpected shout, but Moody simply raised an eyebrow. “Did you learn that from me or another?”

“Several others,” Teddy answered. “You died the summer before I was born.”

That blatant statement didn’t even cause the man to twitch, though Tonks threw an alarmed look in his direction. “Is the Dark Lord still alive?”

“Yes, after a fashion. His soul is anchored to this plane by a collection of cursed objects, which I’ve already begun hunting down and destroying. He’ll be fully dead and gone as soon as I deal with them all.”

“How do you know about the Order of the Phoenix?”

Teddy smiled sadly. “My parents were members, before they died. My godfather, too, several of his friends, and quite a few of my honorary family members.”

“Who wins the World Cup in ninety-four?”

“Ireland, although Bulgaria catches the snitch. Or at least they will, if they get Viktor Krum on their team again.”

Moody snorted. “Who taught you how to fight like that?”

“Ginny Weasley.”

Arthur, who’d been watching their back and forth with a combination of amusement and distress, suddenly started and sat up straighter. “I beg your pardon?”

“She’s one of the best duelists of her generation,” Teddy said softly, “Surviving a year at Hogwarts when half the teaching staff were replaced with Death Eaters tends to leave an impression.”

The man sucked in a deep breath, his face going stiff. “What _happened?"_

“Dumbledore died. Voldemort took control.”

All three of them became decidedly grim at that proclamation, though with Arthur it remained offset by fear, and Tonks looked a bit nauseous. “Is that why you came back?” She asked. “Because He-Who- because V-Voldemort won?”

“No,” Teddy reassured her. “He only kept power for a year, before Harry Potter killed him again, after he and his friends got rid of those cursed objects I mentioned.”

“Then why-?”

“Because other things happened afterwards that I want to change, and I figured the best way to do that would be to make certain the Second War never occurs at all. This way, I get to keep people like my parents alive, and give Harry a happier life, and let more of my friends grow up without missing pieces of their families.”

“...noble of you,” Moody muttered. “Doesn’t explain why you don’t want to trust Dumbledore.”

“He’s a chessmaster. He keeps his strategies to himself, forgets that other people have a right to understand why they’re doing something, and puts _far_ too much stock in prophecies.”

Arthur raised an eyebrow at that. “Aren’t you playing chess yourself right now, Mister Astra?”

“Nah,” Teddy said with an impish grin. “I’m playing Exploding Snap, and seeing how far I can get before everything blows up in my face- so to speak,” he added, glancing at the pile of broken door bits Arthur had swept together.

Tonks snickered, before tilting her head curiously. “Alright, then, since you’re being so quick to answer questions - how, exactly, are you and I family?”

Teddy... hesitated. For a moment, he entertained the thought of actually explaining, maybe even getting a hug from the mother he never knew - but then he looked at her again, painfully aware that the two of them were the same age, that she hadn’t even met Remus yet. He sighed.

And morphed his nose into a pig’s snout.

Tonks gasped, before her entire being lit up with delight - literally. Sparkly shimmers raced across her skin, reflecting the light in the room to make it seem like she was glowing.   
“I’ve never met another Metamorphmagus!” the woman squealed, practically bouncing in place as she looked Teddy up and down. “This is brilliant! You have _got_ to practice with me sometime - do you ever trip over your own feet when they get bigger too-?”

“Nymphadora,” Moody growled.

She just flapped a hand in his direction, not bothering to meet his annoyed glare. “Oh hush up, you, this is a first and I’m determined to enjoy it!”

Teddy couldn’t help but laugh.

-HP-

_“Ag’in!”_

_Rolling his eyes, Teddy concentrated, adding specks of reflective glitter to his face like a swath of freckles. Little Lily squealed with delight, clapping her pudgy toddler hands together until he had to let go of the morph, returning to normal. “Ag’in, ag’in!”_

_“You’re gonna get tired of this sooner or later, right?”_

_“No! Ag’in!”_

-HP-

Dragged into conversation with Tonks about being Metamorphmagi, it took Teddy too long to realize the later hour. He winced, offering apologies, which Moody ignored and Arthur waved off with a tired smile.

“Tomorrow’s my day off,” the man said, “And this is honestly more important than anything else I could be doing in the morning.” 

“Well, fair enough. But I really do need to head out soon - I’ve got a houseguest who’s on edge enough as it is without me getting in later than planned.”

That caused Moody’s scowl to deepen. “Black?”

“Black,” Teddy affirmed, rolling his eyes. “Most of the time, he’s surprisingly good company, but once he gets worried he turns positively grim.”

“Hold on-” Arthur interrupted, “ _-Sirius_ Black, who spent ten years in Azkaban before breaking himself out, is good company?”

“Technically, I’m the one who did the breaking, both in and out I might add.” Teddy smiled wryly.

“How in Merlin's name did you manage _that?”_

“Funny thing about Dementors, they have a much harder time picking up on the emotions of animals rather than humans.” Faced with a trio of blank stares, he elaborated, “Sirius is an animagus, a big black dog. And I’m, well. I’m a werewolf.”

Tonks sat back in surprise, as Arthur made a startled noise, and Moody’s face turned thoughtful. “I wondered if the moon being full had anything to do with the timing, that night. You drank Wolfsbane?”

“Always. There were three younger kids in the house I stayed at most often growing up, and their parents - my godfather and his wife - always made damn sure I had the potion and anything else I needed.” He let himself think of warm summer nights, and high-pitched giggles following him across the yard and back. “Best years of my life, honestly.”

“...well, I suppose all I can say is, good on your godfather and his family, then.” Arthur scrubbed a hand down his face, checking the clock on the wall. “Right. Is there anything else you need to warn us about, before we all head out?”

“Be careful around Lucius Malfoy, especially if you encounter him in Diagon Alley,” Teddy said. “He’s got one of those cursed objects holding Voldemort here, and there’s every possibility he’ll try passing it along to one of your children - both to get it out of his own house and potentially incriminate your family with Dark magic.”

Arthur immediately paled, but jerked his head in a nod. Teddy shifted to look at Moody.

“Bartemius Crouch Senior broke his son out of Azkaban years ago, and has been keeping him locked up at home under the Imperious Curse, but there’s every chance of that changing in the next few years. If you’re able to find a way in and nab the blighter, by all means go for it. If you can’t, though, and Barty Junior manages to escape, you’ll likely be someone he goes after, and he’s an expert at brewing Polyjuice Potion.” The old auror didn’t look alarmed, but his expression did darken as he nodded.

And finally, Teddy focused back on the young woman watching him expectantly. “Would you be willing to do me a favor, and inform your mother than the new Steward of House Black is extending to her an open invitation to Number Twelve Grimmauld Place?”

Tonks frowned, looking a little put out and not receiving a dark warning as the others did, but then she tilted her head to one side consideringly. “Favor for a favor?”

“...sure.”

“Show us what you really look like?”

Teddy blinked, before he huffed out a quick laugh. “Yeah, alright.” He willed himself to stretch taller and thinner, darkened and neatened his hair, ditched the freckles and brought back his amber colored eyes.

Tonks grinned with approval once he’d finished. “Now that’s more like it. A pleasure to actually meet you face to face, Mister Astra.”

“Likewise, Miss Tonks,” he smiled back. “And- please, call me Teddy.”


	9. Sincerely, Earnestly, With Love

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Dear Mister Astra,_
> 
> _I thank you for the kind invitation to return to Grimmauld Place, and while I’ve lost much of my fondness for the place, I think it would be in my best interests to arrange a visit so that we may speak. Would this Thursday afternoon at three o’clock suit?_
> 
> _Warm regards,_
> 
> _Andromeda Tonks_

_Dear Teddy,_

_I’m sorry I didn’t write back sooner, but it’s been a really busy couple of weeks. My classes are wicked, especially Defense with Professor Lupin (but he lets me call him Moony when we’re in his office). Even History is all right - since you warned me about Binns, I always bring a book to read in my lap. So far I’ve finished the Hobbit and Shackleton’s Stowaway and the Evolution of Calpurnia Tate - Neville’s borrowing that last one now, and I think I want to get him his own copy for Christmas, since he likes it so much._

_That’s still really weird to think about - I’ve got a best mate now, and I’ll be able to get him a gift at Christmastime. Will you help me pick out a present for Professor Lupin too? And Sirius, for when I get to meet him! (I’ll get you a present too Teddy, I promise, I just can’t have your help with that one so it stays a surprise.)_

_I forgot to say it before, but the one class that isn’t so wicked is Potions, but you were right - Maizie Becket really does know what she’s talking about, and now she’s tutoring not just me, but Neville and Dean and Seamus too. I invited Ron, but he doesn’t like Snape so much he’d rather avoid Potions altogether. I offered Hermione, like you suggested, but she just looked kind of insulted that anyone would think she needs tutoring. Anyway, Maizie says she’ll be too busy to go over things with us next year since she’ll need to study for Newts, but that she’ll keep an eye on the current fifth years to see who might be able to help out instead._

_I’ve got to go to bed now, but I promise I’ll write again after the Quidditch game this weekend - and thanks again for letting me know the Nimbus came from Professor McGonagall, I’ll be sure to get her a Christmas present too!_

_Sincerely-_

_Earnest-_

_Love,_

_Harry_

__

-HP-

_Dear Edward Astra,_

_I hope you don’t mind me addressing you as such, since Moody shared your alias and it is a bit less of a mouthful than One Who Steps and all._

_I’m going to assume you are responsible for the Weasley Twins bringing me their brother’s pet rat, as upon closer inspection I realized he really did look and smell familiar. You should be pleased to know I’ve handed him off to Moody, with all due precautions, and didn’t once give in to my urge to strangle the bastard._

_If you haven’t set up a subscription to the Daily Prophet, I ought to tell you their headline over Sirius Black’s escape from Azkaban made quite the splash. I’ve had three different Aurors come to speak with me, suspicious and sympathetic by turns. In a related sense, Minerva McGonagall has invited me round to tea twice this week to reminisce and ruminate - whereas Severus Snape seems inclined to spy on me at all hours, despite my truthful insistence I’ve not had anything to do with Sirius in ten years._

_But on to a cheerier topic - how are you doing with your new dog? Does he get to go out for walks often? Chewed up any chairlegs yet? I’d offer advice for dealing with him, but my information is rather out of date; above all, however, just remember to keep him company, and know that I’ll be happy to pitch in with that when we’re able to meet in person._

_In case you haven’t heard directly from him, Harry is doing quite well in Defense. He’s got a knack for picking up new spells, even if articulating the theory behind them sometimes escapes him. James was much the same way with Transfiguration: so much of it simply clicked, instinctively, though you’d never know it when the poor sod had to write his essays explaining why something worked the way it did... Anyway. The first Quidditch game is coming up soon, Gryffindor against Slytherin, and since I doubt you’ll be able to come in person I wondered if you’d like me to take some photographs?_

_Yours,_

_Remus Lupin_

_P.S. Fair warning, I am going to think of a way to get back at you for alerting Fred and George Weasley to the fact a Marauder returned to Hogwarts recently, because it didn’t take them long at all to trip me up into answering to ‘Moony’. I now have two highly concerning stalkers/fans to keep an eye out for, and it’s beginning to drive me up the wall._

-HP-

_Dear Mister Astra,_

_I thank you for the kind invitation to return to Grimmauld Place, and while I’ve lost much of my fondness for the place, I think it would be in my best interests to arrange a visit so that we may speak. Would this Thursday afternoon at three o’clock suit?_

_Warm regards,_

_Andromeda Tonks_

-HP-

Teddy slowly lowered his letters to the tabletop, still staring at the third sheet of parchment with open alarm. “Bugger.” Dealing with his shrewd grandmother so early had not been part of the plan - but then again, if he’d kept on schedule, he wouldn’t have dealt with both his mum and Mad Eye Moody in person nearly so soon either. He glanced up at Hedwig, waiting patiently for a reply to take back to Harry. “Ah, well. No plan survives first contact with the enemy, right?”

She merely blinked at him in reply. Teddy sighed, and grabbed his writing supplies.

-HP-

_Dear Mrs. Tonks,_

_Thursday afternoon suits just fine, I’ll have tea and refreshments ready for you. Would it be agreeable if a certain cousin joined us as well? One who is a great deal more innocent than most people realize, and is eager to try and start rebuilding something of his life._

_Sincerely yours,_

_Edward Astra_

-HP-

_Dear Remus Lupin,_

_Don’t mind at all! Edward is just fine, or Teddy, since that’s what Harry calls me. And thank you for giving me some news on him - the kid writes, but not often, and though it’s improved somewhat his quillwork requires a measure of deciphering._

_I am indeed responsible for involving the Weasley twins, and honestly, what better way to gain their cooperation than by dropping tidbits about their idols? Those two have had the Marauders Map in their possession for years now, any issue you take with their awe comes straight from your own teenage accomplishments._

_Glad as I am to know the rat is in custody, I honestly wouldn’t have blamed you in the slightest for strangling him. I daresay his own life sentence in Azkaban will have to do for us both._

_I really should start getting the Prophet, shouldn’t I. If for no other reason than to cut out certain clippings to hang up on my wall... Anywho. The dog is doing quite well, getting plenty of food and exercise, even if he has a tendency to wear on my patience. Still a quick wit, though, even with a lack of targets to practice on. I daresay he’ll be as excited for a visit as you are._

_Pictures of the game would be fantastic. With any luck, I’ll have the opportunity to sneak in to see one or two next term, but right now there’s far too much work to be done._

_Gratefully yours,_

_Edward_

_P.S. When you happen to be on nightly patrol, perhaps keep an eye out for any large ornate mirrors tucked away in unused classrooms near the library? Just because I managed to keep one danger out of Hogwarts this year doesn’t mean Dumbledore didn’t bring in another of his own, and it would be just Harry’s luck to stumble into it._

-HP-

_Dear Harry,_

_Glad to know you’re having fun, kiddo. Now be honest - are you getting enough to eat at every meal? And I don’t just mean filling up on treacle tart, thank you very much._

_Don’t worry about taking so long to write, I’ve been pretty busy myself. Getting one house cleaned up, another rebuilt, rehabilitating a mangy mutt I’m sure you’re going to love... it all takes up more time than you’d expect in a day!_

_I’m very pleased you’ve enjoyed the novels, I’ll send along some more in a week or so. And maybe a few for Neville, eh? It’s good to know you’ve made a close friend already - though I’m not surprised, since technically you two already knew each other from a long time ago, not that you’d remember. Your mum and his, Alice, were good friends in school, and they fought in the War together too, even had the pair of you within a few days of each other! I’m sure Remus will know more than me, of course, so you could ask him if you haven’t already._

_And speaking of Moony, of course I’ll help you pick out a present for him, and whoever else is on your list as well. As for me, there’s not much of anything that I need for Christmas, except maybe some pictures of you in your Quidditch robes!_

_Maizie’s a good egg - I wouldn’t be surprised if she ends up teaching Potions herself someday, maybe after Professor Snape quits Hogwarts to escape all you little dunderheads. (That said, he’s not giving you any serious trouble, is he? Gits can be ignored and survived, but bullies need to be dealt with, and yes there_ is _a difference.)_

_I know it seems like I’m being a little pushy, but I’ve still got my fingers crossed you make more than token efforts to become friends with Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger. Feeling alone in one’s House can make for some pretty rotten school years, and more connections to be able to reach out to those around you never hurt. Maybe you could talk to him about Quidditch, or play some chess. And she’s probably just feeling a tad insecure with her surroundings, being a muggleborn and all, so perhaps starting a conversation in that direction? Maybe she’s read some of the books I’ve sent you, that could be a good place to start._

_I realize it’s a day later, but sleep well kiddo, and good luck with the game!!_

_Love,_

_Teddy_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it's a bit short this week, but next weekend we're gonna have a doozy of a chapter, because:
> 
> Grandma Andy is coming for a Visit.


	10. Andy: Familiar and Familial

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sirius let loose a snort as he slumped into the remaining seat. “Astra? _That’s_ the alias you’ve been using?”
> 
> “The irony appeals to me,” the younger man replied loftily, before his face broke out in a mischievous grin. “Besides, isn’t it family tradition to go with astrology-based names?” Sirius snorted again, and Andy hummed, another puzzle piece clicking into place.

On Thursday afternoon, Andy purposely timed her arrival to be ten minutes ahead of schedule, purely to give herself a chance to simply stand and stare up at Number Twelve. She hadn’t set foot on any of her family’s properties since eloping with Ted more than twenty years before, nor given in to the urge to walk past and watch from a distance. The heartache would’ve been more that she wanted to deal with, knowing no warm welcome awaited her inside.

A different sort of ache settled instead, with the knowledge that new management had taken up residence, her elders all dead and gone, her sisters and cousins lost to her.

Well. All but one cousin, apparently.

When the alarm she’d set for four o’clock gently chimed, Andy straightened her shoulders, took a deep breath, and strode up to the door. At her brisk knock, the door eased open, revealing a young man coming down the entry hall towards her. He smiled, and a thought hummed in the back of Andy’s mind. She knew that smile.

“Mister, Astra, I presume,” the woman said slowly. Something in the young man’s face froze momentarily, before his expression eased from cheerfully welcoming to something a little more reserved.

“Mrs. Tonks,” he nodded. “Won’t you please come in?”

She did so, noting how he merely needed to glance at the heavy oak door for it to obligingly swing shut once more. “I take it you’ve assumed Stewardship for Sirius.”

Astra blinked at her blunt observation, and let out a short chuckle. “I’m going to have a hard time trying to talk around certain subjects with you, aren’t I?”

“Undoubtedly. But perhaps we should sit before I ask any of my questions.”

“Of course, right this way, please.” He led her to the upstairs sitting room, a meeting place reserved for family or exceptionally high quality guests. There they found Sirius, grumbling something under his breath as he paced back and forth in front of the fully covered tea table. He turned on his heel, spotted them, and nearly tripped over thin air as his eyes widened.

“Andy! I, er- that is-” The woman cut off whatever he’d been about to attempt to say by striding forward, and wrapping her arms around her formerly lost cousin. After a moment’s surprise, Sirius hugged her back. And when Andy silently pulled away, he did her the courtesy of holding still as she slapped him upside the head.

 _“That_ was for running off ten years ago without telling anyone what happened,” Andy said with a voice sharp as steel.

“Yeah,” Sirius replied sheepishly. “Definitely deserved it. Probably a few more too, honestly.”

“I’ll settle for just the one.” She hugged him again, before moving to sit in one of the available chairs.

“Well, it seems you already know the broad strokes of what happened with Pettigrew,” Astra said slowly as he took to spot across from her. “Your daughter’s doing, I presume?”

“Yes. She had _quite_ a bit of explaining to do upon delivering your invitation, Mister Astra.”

Sirius let loose a snort as he slumped into the remaining seat. “Astra? _That’s_ the alias you’ve been using?”

“The irony appeals to me,” the younger man replied loftily, before his face broke out in a mischievous grin. “Besides, isn’t it family tradition to go with astrology-based names?” Sirius snorted again, and Andy hummed, another puzzle piece clicking into place. Astra briefly shot her an indecipherable look, before he focused on collecting some tidbits onto his plate to nibble.

“You ever heard of Gradus Inter Astra, Andy?” Her cousin asked, grabbing some food for himself as well, being a good deal less poised with his movements and nearly knocking over a little tiered tower of finger sandwiches. The table beneath seemed to shrink a bit in response, at least until Astra carefully gave it a gentle tap.

“I have,” Andy replied, watching Astra’s reassurance nudge the tea table into expanding again. “Thanks to the children’s song, originally. Ted and I got into several discussions concerning muggle versus magical lullabies and such when Nymphadora was little, which led to a great deal of comparative research when we wanted a break from real life.”

“Brilliant - so you already understand this bloke’s come back in time, yes? We don’t need to deliver any dire warnings about the future to convince you?”

“No, I’m aware, Nymphadora was very enthusiastic when describing their talk at the Leaky cauldron.” She paused, as Astra poured himself a cup of tea. “You’re the only other Metamorphmagus my daughter’s ever personally met, you know.”

“So I learned,” he replied drily. Behind his bemused expression, however, lurked an underlayer of pain. Seeing it cemented Andy’s suspicion, and her next words came right as the young man lifted his cup to drink.

“You didn’t tell her you’re her son.”

He sputtered, coughing as tea went down the wrong way. Sirius stared, eyebrows rising. “Well, you’re still a Slytherin to the core.”

Andy dismissed that with a brief smirk, her focus still glued to the young man trying desperately to regain his composure. “Knew it was too bloody early,” he wheezed, grabbing a napkin to press to the tea stains rapidly taking over his shirt.

“I’m sorry, were we keeping this a secret?” Sirius asked, blinking. “Because I seem to recall you told _me_ you’re Dora’s kid the first day we were here.”

“Yeah, because I had to explain that business with my name,” Astra snarked back. “Not to mention I needed to keep you off balance long enough to get myself settled as the person in charge for the Hearth’s benefit.”

“Oh is _that_ all...”

“Boys,” Andy couldn’t help but admonish. Both of them twitched, glancing at her, before Astra chuckled, and Sirius threw himself back in his seat with a huff, arms folded but grinning. “Now then. Perhaps a _proper_ introduction for my first ever grandchild?”

“Edward Lupin,” came the immediate reply. “But everyone calls me Teddy.”

That made her smile, already thinking of how wide her husband would beam when he heard it. “I daresay that caused a bit of confusion at our house, growing up.”

Astra- _Teddy,_ started to reply, but faltered, his expression falling. “Not- not really. I never- Grandpa-” He stopped and sighed, running a hand through his hair before trying again. “They named me for him because he was gone before I came along.”

In a split second, Andy’s blood turned to ice. “Oh.”

“It’s not going to happen this time,” Teddy insisted, leaning forward to capture her suddenly clenched fingers with his own. “I _promise,_ Gran.” She took a moment to swallow back the panic in her throat, and nodded once. A grunt off to the side caused her to glance at Sirius, who’d gone from amused to brooding. Teddy followed her gaze, also frowning as he took in the other wizard’s grim expression.

“It’s finally occurred to me,” Sirius stated, “That when we were doing that whole initial ‘explain some things but keep me off balance’ discussion, you said who your parents _were,_ who your godfather _was.”_

A deeper fear made Andy grasp harder at Teddy’s fingers.

“...my mum and dad died in the last battle of the War when I was a baby,” her grandson whispered. “And Harry was killed in front of me just before I turned twelve years old.”

-HP-

_They grabbed him in Hogsmeade, coming back from an Easter holiday spent at home with Harry and Ginny and the sprogs. He never saw the wand that turned his shirt into a Portkey, nor did he see much at all afterward, when they dropped a bag over his head and Apparated at least a dozen times. His tie got yanked off, sent away with a message for his godfather, instructions on what to do if he wanted Teddy back alive. They took his knapsack, and his wand, and kept saying the most_ awful _things over and over, insulting him and his parents and his family-_

_The bag came back off once they arrived in a dim muggle alley, devoid of any other inhabitants, one of his captors hissing that she wanted him to watch. Just a few minutes later, Harry appeared further up the alley, Portkey in one hand, wand in the other, the most terrifyingly furious expression on his face that Teddy had ever seen-_

_Three Cutting Curses, from all directions. One he blocked with a shield, the second he side-stepped, but the third- the third-_

_The third got him. The third got him, and Teddy screamed, and a surge of magic knocked all three of his captors down, giving him the chance to run to his godfather. He needed to stop the bleeding, need to stop it, please, please stop, stop talking, stop wasting energy, stay alive and stop telling me it’ll be okay, it’s not, it’s NOT OKAY, Harry, PLEASE-_

-HP-

Teddy withdrew into himself after his statement, a reaction to grief that Andy knew well. Sirius recognized it, and didn’t try to force the young man back to present, but instead began talking. He started telling Andy all about his old friend Remus, Teddy’s father, about how he’d been the most responsible of the Marauders (for what that was worth), that she’d love having him as a son-in-law if and when he and Nymphadora hit things off, and not to worry about the monthly furry problem, Remus was an old hand at keeping others safe-

“Wait,” Andy interrupted. _“He’s_ a werewolf too?” Sudden concern for her daughter and grandchild reared up, because much as she didn't want to, the woman couldn't help but wonder if-

“He never bit anyone,” Teddy muttered, before Sirius could. “Only ever came close once, and that was this idiot’s fault, anyway.”

“Yeah,” the older wizard said with a wince. “Anyway. Somehow, apparently, being a Metamorphmagus and werewolf both makes for a good combo, because Teddy here’s much quicker in his recovery than I’ve ever seen Remus.”

“Probably the only reason I exist, too,” Teddy commented. “Lycanthropy being passed from parent to child is unheard of, because the curse doesn’t mix well with a developing fetus. But throw in both a mother and baby with shapeshifting magic already in their bones and, well. Here I am.”

“Here you are,” Andy murmured back.

Teddy glanced up to meet her gaze, faint smile on his face, but a wary look in his eye. “Not going to hold it against me, are you?”

“Of course not, darling.” Her turn to reach out, Andy cupped his cheek, trying to impart as much affection as she could - ahead of his time regardless, this was her grandchild, and nothing would keep her from loving him. Apparently the gesture was familiar, as Teddy leaned into it gratefully. “Now, as for your father, I suppose it would make more sense to hold against him the fact he’s friends with Sirius, rather than something he couldn’t control.”

“Hey,” her cousin protested, causing Teddy to break out laughing. Andy, smug, leaned back in her seat, and took a sip of tea.

-HP-

_Gran took him home that night, as Teddy couldn’t so much as look at Ginny without bursting into fresh tears, and everyone agreed he shouldn’t return to school quite yet._

_Neither of them slept. Rather than even make the pretense of trying, Gran settled into her armchair by the living room fireplace, holding Teddy on her lap as she hadn’t since he’d turned seven. Long fingers stroked his hair, as her other hand held both his own, and Gran sang. Wordless sounds, rising and falling, never too cheerful, but never too somber, either. They drifted in-between, keeping Teddy’s focus, while also giving him time to let the shock and grief and guilt roll through._

_When daybreak crept through the windows, she finally spoke. “People are going to want to ask questions. Some will tell you how sorry they are, to the point you can’t accept any more apologies. Others may try to tease you, until your world dims with rage and you need to get away or fight back.” Teddy sniffled, and Gran hugged him closer. “I know, darling - we’ve lost too much, you and I. So when you feel you can’t stand to suffer the weight of their words any longer, I want you to reach for me. Write, Floo, I don’t care - I will be here, or I will write back, or I will come. And we’ll sit together, the two of us, until it stops hurting quite so badly.”_

_He nodded against her shoulder, and they remained silent as dawn broke over the horizon._

-HP-

“I know you’re going to be terribly busy with your plans,” Andy told her grandson, holding both his hands before her as they stood in the front hall. “But I want you to make sure to still take time for yourself in-between schemes to save the wizarding world.”

Teddy ducked his head, smiling. “Alright, Gran.”

“I mean it, young man. I’m in your corner now, for better or worse, and if you need someone to simply sit still and listen, I’ll be there.” She reached up to tip his chin back, so she could see the eyes glistening with new tears. “Write, Floo, I don’t care - I am _going_ to be there for you.”

He swallowed, and replied hoarsely, “I know. You always have been, and at this point I expect you always will be.”

Andy nodded firmly. “That’s absolutely correct. And as soon as the opportunity for a quiet evening arises, I fully expect you to come to dinner, and meet your grandfather. I’ll explain things to him beforehand, so we’ll be able to focus on discussing all the things one ought to know about their first grandchild: your hobbies, your interests, your romantic pursuits...”

Teddy chuckled as she trailed off. “Alright, I promise I’ll come, first chance I get. Just the three of us, at first, yeah?”

“Mm-hm. I expect you need to have a proper conversation with my daughter before we invite her, with fewer Metamorphmagi distractions.” She arched an eye at him, eliciting further chuckling.

“Yes ma’am, I will.”

“Good.” Andy pressed a quick kiss to his cheek, and then turned to depart. She only paused once at Number Twelve’s front gate to wave back at Teddy, watching her from the doorway still, before setting off up the street in order to hail a cab. The whole way, Andy never stopped smiling.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whether you're smiling or in tears right now (or both), I hope you enjoyed this chapter.
> 
> Next week's update, unfortunately, might be a tad delayed, because *pauses for a deep breath* I've made the decision to self-publish my first novel, rather than wasting another three years not-looking for a literary agent. And in order to get the full impact with my long-term readers whom I adore, the following week will be dedicated to adding a new chapter to as many of my ongoing stories as possible, with the same note at the bottom with a link to my tumblr, where I'll have actual details regarding the book. With any luck, the updates won't be total crap, and my new and old readers alike will actually feel inclined to go take a look at what my original writing looks like!
> 
> (And with more than a little luck, I'll gain enough success with the first book to be willing to publish more short stories, and maybe even start on the re-writes needed for the rest of the Turning Point Trilogy...)
> 
> Anywho, keep your fingers crossed! Keep reading! And keep up those lovely all-caps keysmash comments, they always cheer me up when I check my email xD
> 
> -Tri


	11. Change of Plans

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The To-Do list that took center stage on his wall of notes began to creep into Half Done territory, giving Teddy a nice warm feeling every occasion he glanced at it.
> 
> So of course, two days before Halloween, someone decided to mess with his timetable.

The next month seemed to pass in one quick blur. Teddy continued to spend most days out at Clay Lane, rebuilding Potter Manor in gradual steps, sometimes with Sirius helping, more often with him “over-seeing”. At Grimmauld, he coaxed more life back out of the old walls and faded furnishings, until the Hearth burned steadily at all hours, and movement flickered in the corner of one’s eye in every room. He returned to Diagon Alley from time to time for supplies, even buying a second owl at one point so Hedwig didn’t spend so many days away from Hogwarts and Harry.

And oh, the letters he sent. Some went to allies, encouraging new wards on their homes, or moving to different properties without advertising the change of address. Others went to potential enemies, subtle threats buried in sugared niceties, which none too softly indicated a coming shift in the balance of power, and wouldn’t visiting overseas make for a lovely change? Then there were the multi-page missives delivered to _The Daily Prophet,_ with clues and hints and the occasional bit of solid evidence regarding the more unsavory types littering their government. The reporters he picked out ate it all up, especially the young woman who replaced Rita Skeeter following her arrest for utilizing an unregistered Animagus form to spy on others.

(It was with a profound sense of glee that Teddy sent off _that_ particular letter to the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. The only one he felt even better about was the absolutely stuffed envelope concerning one Dolores Umbridge.)

A few times, he signed as One Who Steps Between Stars, but for the most part Teddy used his alias Edward Astra, in a few cases even adding the title Steward of House Black. Inevitably, of course, there came return letters, demanding to know exactly who he was and where he’d come from. Those that could prove useful to answer, he did so - those that were written by worried Pureblood lords and ladies attempting to regain their footing, Teddy simply tossed in the bin.

The To-Do list that took center stage on his wall of notes began to creep into Half Done territory, giving Teddy a nice warm feeling every occasion he glanced at it.

So of course, two days before Halloween, someone decided to mess with his timetable.

-HP-

“Oi. When are you going to have dinner with Andy and Ted?”

That particular afternoon, Sirius had decided to lounge in the library rather than wander around the house amusing himself. Teddy, previously immersed in a stack of letter drafts he wanted to re-work before sending, picked his head up and blinked owlishly. “Hmm?”

“You. Dinner. With your grandparents.” Sirius grinned, shaking his head. “Got a hearing problem or something there, Teddy-boy?”

“Oh, bugger off. And I don’t know when we’ll be having dinner, it’s got to wait a bit longer.”

“How much longer?”

“Until I’ve gotten this lot,” Teddy gestured to his heap of parchment sheets, “Down to a more manageable size, for one thing.”

Sirius simply raised an eyebrow at him. “And what excuse are you going to use once that’s done?”

The younger wizard huffed, wracking his brain to try and come up with a suitable retort, but right then a tap came at the window. Frowning, as it wasn’t usual for Hedwig to arrive in the middle of the day, Teddy stood to go let her in. His frown deepened as the owl hopped immediately to his shoulder and stuck out her leg, displaying a rather crumpled looking roll of parchment that wasn’t even sealed.

_Minister sent Dementors to the school. Swarmed the Quidditch Pitch during Gryffindor practice. Harry’s in a bad way in the Hospital Wing. How soon can you get here?_

_-Remus_

“FUCK.”

-HP-

“I should’ve moved faster to get that blowhard out of office,” Teddy muttered, hurrying along the road up towards the school, Padfoot loping by his side. “I needed Umbridge out of the way first, but _still-”_

A whine from the big dog cut him off, and Teddy glanced up to see a figure waiting for them by the gates - along with two hovering patches of darkness standing guard on either side. Snarling, the young man lifted his wand.

_C’mon now Teddy, push off the ground- that’s it, you’re doing it, you’re flying!_ A massive glowing wolf burst to life, and in moments chased the Dementors a good distance away - not completely out of sight, but far enough removed to not impede him or Padfoot from jogging through. The fellow waiting for them didn’t seem bothered with their haste, and simply fell into step with Teddy as they headed up the hill.

“Mister Astra, I presume?”

“Mister Lupin,” Teddy replied, sparing the other werewolf a brief glance. “Has he woken up yet?”

“Briefly, right when your Patronus first came in to say you’d be arriving shortly. He smiled when he looked at it.” Remus then glanced down at the dog running silently between them, and something trembled in his face. “Hello, Padfoot.”

A brief swerve let the dog bump his shoulder against the man’s thigh, just enough to acknowledge him.

“Are we going to have to worry about avoiding the Headmaster tonight?” Teddy asked, as they rounded a corner and the castle’s massive front doors came into view.

“I doubt it. He went off with Fudge after getting Harry settled, and hasn’t been back since. With any luck, he’ll be able to get the Dementors removed in short order.”

“And that _I_ doubt, seeing as he didn’t the first time around. What caused the bloody idiot to send them in the first place?”

“Apparently some sort of tip about Sirius having been spotted on the grounds.” Remus grimaced at the look Teddy sent him. “I know, but _they_ didn’t have any way of knowing it wasn’t true. And Fudge has been getting desperate these last six weeks, he knows he doesn’t look good going so long without any sort of progress on finding Azkaban’s one and only escapee.”

The younger man shook his head, taking the front steps two at once. “It’s past time Moody and Bones went public with their findings on Pettigrew.” He ducked through the open doors, and promptly froze. Remus, not expecting the sudden stop, nearly plowed into Teddy’s back - with Padfoot, there was no ‘nearly’, and Teddy needed to pinwheel his arms for a moment to keep from pitching forward onto his face.

Minerva McGonagall’s nostrils flared.

It was a very near thing, biting his tongue before he could mutter “Sorry, Headmistress,” but Teddy managed.

“I take it,” the woman said slowly, “That this would be Mister’s Potter unofficial guardian whom you have mentioned, Remus?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

The witch gave a sharp nod, looking Teddy up and down and making him wish he’d done more than grab plain trainers to go with his muggle jeans and ratty old jumper. Then her gaze dropped to Padfoot, and narrowed dangerously.

“I know you had a long talk with Remus and Mad-Eye just the other day, Professor,” Teddy said quietly. “He’s only here to check on Harry with me.”

McGonagall made a non-committal noise in the back of her throat. “I shall be watching just the same, Mister Astra.”

“Perfectly understandable. May we proceed to the infirmary now?”

She took a step to one side, letting Teddy and Padfoot pass before taking a spot beside Remus and starting up a murmured conversation with him. Teddy firmly made himself ignore their faint words, concentrating his senses instead on avoiding the scents of students up ahead and taking a back route towards the Hospital Wing. Padfoot helped with that as well, at one point nudging Teddy to take a secret passage that brought them up and over two corridors. Their little group did, of course, inevitably have to pass by _some_ curious gazes, but the fewer people able to gossip about them the better.

The infirmary doors thankfully sat open, waiting for them, allowing Teddy to duck right in and make a beeline for the third bed on the right. He did falter, briefly, upon seeing the four students clustered around it as well, but thankfully didn’t freeze up as he had with McGonagall.

George and the boy who could only be Fred Weasley both looked up to give him a puzzled glance, but Neville and Ron didn’t drag their attention away from Harry until Teddy had stepped right up to his side and set a hand on top of the unconscious boy’s head.

“Oi,” the youngest Weasley brother protested. “Who are you?”

Teddy didn’t bother answering. He focused on cozy mornings after full moons, the sheer amount of love that settled around him and his family when they all cuddled together for breakfast, and a silvery-blue glow started up around his hand. It burned brightest over the line of Harry’s scar, but otherwise spread across his head in an even amount, and after a few moments the eleven year old stirred.

“C’mon, kiddo,” Teddy whispered. “It’s too early in the day to be settled for bed, you’re going to miss dinner and your treacle tart at this rate.”

“What _are_ you doing?” Sharp steps came up behind them, stopping only when Remus assured Madam Pomfrey they’d brought in a family member responsible for Harry’s well-being. Teddy didn’t pay them the slightest bit of attention, not as Padfoot settled his head on the edge of the bed, and Neville Longbottom leaned in closer as well.

“What is that?” The boy asked, eyes wide.

“Variation on a Patronus,” Teddy replied, equally softly as Harry’s face scrunched up. “Works quicker to drive out Dark influence than waiting for someone to wake up so you can stuff them with chocolate. Something my godfather and one of his friends came up with, a long time ago.”

Neville went quiet, but Teddy could practically hear his mind turning, wondering if the spell variant just worked on Dementor effects or not. He resolved to bump up his attempt to earn the boy’s trust and offer to use it on Alice and Frank - they _were_ the reason his Harry and Neville crafted the spell in the first place, after all.

Then green eyes blinked open, and everything else became a lesser priority. “...Teddy?”

“Hey you,” he replied, sagging a little. “Heard you took a nasty tumble off your broom this morning.”

Harry squinted in confusion, before he let out a gasp and tried to shoot upright. “Those- things! With the grey cloaks! What were-”

“Dementors, Mister Potter,” McGonagall spoke from the foot of his bed. “The Minister of Magic decided to send a group of them onto the Hogwarts grounds today as a new security measure, unfortunately _without_ enough advance warning for us to gather all students safely back indoors before their arrival.”

Teddy raised an eyebrow at her. “Did he actually send word at _all_ before they got here? Or was it an after the matter sort of thing?”

Her frown deepened. “The latter, Mister Astra.” He rolled his eyes with a sigh, before looking back down at Harry.

“Fair warning, kiddo: Minister Fudge is an idiot, and one who makes stupid decisions even when he _isn’t_ trying to save face. If he tries to talk to you about anything, keep quiet and insist on heading off as soon as you can, I don’t care how rude it seems.”

“Oh-kay?” Slowly, the boy eased back down onto his pillows, and finally noticed his friends still gathered awkwardly around the bed. “Oh! Erm, hi, guys...”

“Hi,” Ron replied, glancing between him and Teddy with a weird expression. “You feeling alright, mate?”

“I guess? I don’t- I can’t really remember what happened...”

“Oh, well that’s quite simple, really,” George piped up. “See, this big bloody swarm of soul-sucking Dementors flew up, and seemed to think you’d make a decent meal for whatever reason-”

“-and quite unexpectedly, ickle Harrikins, you apparently decided to give the rest of us heart attacks by passing out and falling off your broom,” his twin added.

“The good news is, you _didn’t_ fall straight to the ground and break your neck!”

“The bad news is, well-”

“You fell into the stands and down a bunch of steps, and broke pretty much everything else.”

Harry blinked at them, before glancing at his body, which admittedly didn’t much in the way of casts or bandages. “I did?”

“You did, Mister Potter,” Madam Pomfrey cut in, leaving off her annoyed conversation with a bemused looking Remus. “Fortunately I’ve been able to repair most of the minor fractures, the worst of which were located in your left arm and leg. You’ll be staying in here for the rest of tonight and likely a good portion of tomorrow morning, but then you should be fit to return to Gryffindor Tower before classes on Monday.”

“Oh. Thank you, ma’am. Um, is Teddy allowed to stay? I mean, not the whole time, if you’ve got work to do,” he quickly added, looking up with a concerned expression.

The young man just smiled wanly. “Kiddo, _you_ are more important than anything else I could be doing right now. Besides, clearly I need to step up what ground rules I’m giving you - such as not facing down groups of Dementors until you’re a third year at _least.”_

Harry offered him a sheepish grin, and several amused snorts could be heard around the group. A certain impatient Animagi evidently took that as his cue to be introduced, and a wet nose found its way underneath Harry’s hand. The boy jumped. “Whoa. Is this-?”

“Kiddo, meet Padfoot.” Teddy carefully not-watched the Weasley twins from the corner of his eye, and felt quite smug as they jumped themselves. “He’s usually a bit of a troublemaker, but I’ve gotten him to promise to be on his best behavior while we’re here - and if he gets overwhelming at any point, I’m sure Remus won’t mind taking him off our hands for a bit, right Moony?”

Remus sighed at him, weary gaze on George and Fred, who looked fit to burst. “Why do you insist on doing this to me.” Neville’s eyebrows had risen in surprise, while Ron just looked confused, and Madam Pomfey had a peculiar expression on her face.

“Minerva, wasn’t-?”

“Come along, Poppy,” the other witch replied in a tired tone, also watching the Weasley twins. “We need to have a long discussion. Remus...?”

“I’m coming,” the man answered. “Boys, I daresay you lot need to hurry to dinner soon, and bed after - Harry and his visitors will still be here in the morning, you can talk to them again then.”

With varying levels of disappointment, the other students said their goodbyes to Harry and Teddy (and Padfoot too in the case of the twins) before traipsing off out of the infirmary. McGongall pulled Madam Pomfrey into the mediwitch’s office, Remus trailing after with a single look of warning sent over his shoulder before the door closed.

As soon as it was just the three of them, Harry looked at Padfoot expectantly. Teddy used his wand to float over some privacy screens, before nodding his permission. In an instant, Padfoot shifted and grew, replaced by Sirius standing at Harry’s bedside, looking uncharacteristically nervous.

“Hey, Prongslet,” he managed to say.

“Hi,” the boy replied, eyes wide and shining.

“...y’know, I don’t think in all the years he played Quidditch, your dad ever _quite_ managed to break so many bones in a single fall.” Sirius gave a brief chuckle, then cleared his throat, and dragged over a chair to fall into. “I- I’m gonna be honest, kiddo, I’m not- not really all the way right in my head yet, and- I have _really missed you,_ but I don’t know what to say, and half the time what I _do_ say is gonna be stuff like that, about your Dad and your mum, and, I-”

“That’s okay,” Harry reassured him, scooting to sit a little higher. “I- I don’t know a lot about them, anyway, and, that’s probably what a godfather is supposed to do, right? Tell stories about a kid’s parents?”

_You don’t mind telling me about them, right?_

_Of course not, Teddy. That’s a big part of being your godfather, after all - telling as many stories as I can, so you get to feel a little closer to them with each one._

Smiling to himself, Teddy just stood back, and let his pair of rescued charges get to know one another.

-HP-

Madam Pomfrey returned some time later with fire in her eyes, and insisted on giving Sirius a full check-up of his own. She dragged him off, ignoring the weak protests, and Remus took the opportunity to look in on the drowsy Harry.

“He’s quieter than you said,” the boy mentioned.

“I expect he’ll be loud enough once you’re feeling better,” Remus replied, smiling down at him. When Harry’s eyes slipped closed and stayed that way, the man turned to look inquiringly at Teddy.

“I’ll stay with him,” the younger man said. “You go have some bonding time with the mutt - maybe make sure Madam Pomfrey doesn’t try to give him a flea bath.”

Remus made an amused sound. “Does he need one?” Chuckling, he nonetheless headed off to the other side of the infirmary, stepping quicker at the sound of a loud whine from Sirius. Teddy shook his head, grinning. When he glanced back up, it was to find Professor McGonagall standing before him. She stared for a long moment.

“I admit to not being entirely certain of you yet, Mister Astra,” she finally said. “But I suppose if I’m willing to believe the stories concerning the ritual you claim to have used, I don’t have a choice in trusting your recommendations.”

Teddy only offered her a slight shrug. “Your choices are your own, ma’am. I’m just trying to keep the people I care about safe, and hopefully everything I recommend reflects that.”

“Hm.”

When there didn’t seem to be any further remarks incoming, Teddy turned to go claim the chair Sirius had vacated. He ran a thumb across Harry’s forehead once, getting a sleepy mumble in return, and then just settled into place where he could keep one eye on the kid and another on the opening between privacy screens. McGonagall continued to watch him.

“It might help,” Teddy commented after a bit, “If you wrote to Andromeda Tonks.” He didn’t elaborate further, but the witch still nodded in consideration.

“I may just do that. Goodnight, Mister Astra.”

“Goodnight, Headmistress.” A split second after the word left his mouth, Teddy winced. McGonagall froze mid-step, her back visibly stiff. After a long pause, however, she didn’t turn back around to demand he elaborate, and instead continued her exit. Only once the woman was out of sight did Teddy slump bonelessly into the chair.

“Well,” he said to the sleeping Harry. “Let’s hope today’s excitement is the last of it for a while.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Poor Minerva is gonna be in for a rough time with all the boys together in one place, even if it IS just for a day...
> 
> Sorry about the posting delay folks, but I wanted to hold of on the update until I was able to say, VICTORY IS MINE!!! As of half an hour ago, the ebook version of my first novel went live, and the paperback copy is pending even now >:3
> 
> I have no idea how to stick links in here, so come check out my tumblr for the details! You can search for Triscribe, Stories from the Scribe, or just Wolfen's Rage, it all leads back to me x)
> 
> Looking forward to your comments as always,  
> -Tri


	12. Wake-up Call

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Later, after Ron and Neville showed up with Dean Thomas and Seamus Finnegan in tow and Padfoot was soaking up attention like a sponge, Remus caught Teddy’s eye and tilted his head towards the other end of the infirmary. They didn’t go too far, neither willing to leave the boys unattended for long, but Remus made certain they were out of earshot before speaking. “Dare I ask what threat Molly Weasley removed that makes you speak so solemnly of her?”

_“Teddy!”_

_Jamie?_

_“Teddy, where are you!”_

_I’m coming, Lily-pad, hold on-_

_“Please, Teddy, come back- come back- don’t leave us!”_

A slobbery tongue suddenly swiping across his face caused Teddy to jerk awake with a strangled shout, hand instinctively grabbing for his wand-

Harry laughed, and Teddy froze. Balanced with both front paws on the arms of the chair, Padfoot panted and wagged his tail, while behind him, Remus looked about two seconds away from sniggering.

“Not funny,” Teddy grumbled, shoving the big dog off and to the floor. “Couldn’t have just poked my nose or something, nooo, gotta give me _dog cooties_ as a wake up call-”

“S’your own fault,” Harry said through a mouthful of food. He swallowed, and added, “I tried calling your name, but you only twitched and mumbled ‘wait, Al, I’m coming’.”

Grimacing, Teddy accepted the plate of food Remus handed over, and silently begged for none of them to ask who Al was. Thankfully for him, Padfoot proved to be a good distraction, hopping up onto the bed with Harry and making his best begging face. Their small group spent the next several minutes eating and/or stealing bites from other plates, exchanging mock insults every time.

And then a pair of grinning redheads appeared.

-HP-

_“I admit, I don’t ever visit the grave,” George told him, one night when Teddy was fifteen and sick of everyone and everything. “Even knowing Angelina and Roxie and our Freddie are waiting for me to come home, I’m terrified I’d sit down next to him and never get up again.”_

_The boy slowly nodded. “I keep begging off, when Ginny invites me to go with her and the kids. It’s just... telling them stories is hard enough, anywhere else. I don’t think I’d be able to keep from breaking down if they so much as asked me his favorite color, all of us standing in the cemetery.”_

_George barked out a bitter laugh, reaching out to pour another finger of firewhiskey into Teddy’s borrowed glass. “I understand, mate. I really do.”_

-HP-

“Good mo-rning, most esteemed Messrs Moony and Padfoot,” the much younger George Weasley beamed.

“And to our equally admirable Messrs Potter and Astra as well!” Fred added.

Teddy smirked, as Remus clapped a hand over his eyes. “It’s too early for this,” the older man grumbled, automatically lifting his plate higher before Harry could swipe the last piece of bacon.

“Never too early for your fans, Professor,” Teddy teased, stealing a fingerful of hashbrowns from Harry while the kid was still distracted. He popped them in his mouth before adding, “Honestly, though, I’m surprised they waited this long, rather than sneaking back over last night.”

“Ah, well, we think McGonagall might’ve suspected we would try for that,” George piped up as he and his brother trotted over. “Good old Filch never seemed to leave the area, and we decided best not make a loud distraction to draw him off, ‘lest it wake likkle Harrikins here!”

“How about that, you two _are_ capable of being responsible.” Both twins made exaggerated expressions of horror at Teddy’s comment, which caused Padfoot to let out a barking laugh. It didn’t change much in the following moments, as he shifted back into human form.

“I already knew I would like these two,” the man grinned, “But this just is even better than expected - why in the world would you even _want_ to avoid them, Moony?”

“Because I’m not a teenager hell-bent on pranking every Slytherin in the school anymore, Pads,” Remus huffed. It took a second for them to notice how the Weasley twins had frozen, their gob-smacked faces locked onto Sirius.

Abruptly, Teddy recalled he’d never actually told them Padfoot’s true identity.

“Fred, George,” Harry spoke up, “This is my godfather, Sirius Black. I only got to meet him last night, after you all left, but I already know he’s brilliant. And he didn’t work for Voldemort, either.” Both grown men coughed at that blunt statement, and the twins looked a bit taken aback, but Teddy found himself smiling proudly at the kid’s no-nonsense attitude.

“I suspect we’re in for a long bit of storytelling,” he said. “Why don’t you boys pull up a seat?”

-HP-

_Teddy found the picture by accident, helping Ginny clean out the house’s attic one day, which mostly involved consolidating baby things, shifting old school trunks and moving boxes, and very carefully not looking at the pile of Harry’s belongings in their marked corner._

_One trunk that Teddy moved bore the Weasley “W” carved onto the front rim, but whatever first name preceded it had been violently scratched out. Curious in spite of himself, he lifted the lid for a quick peek. A handful of books and parchment stacks rested atop a Potions kit and a cardboard box labelled “Property of Future Weasley Wizarding Wheezes”, which made him guess it must have belonged to Uncle George. But then Teddy raised the lid a fraction higher, and the photograph taped to the underside became visible._

_Seven teenagers in red and gold Quidditch robes gathered on bright green grass, broomsticks in hand and smiles on their faces. He knew Alicia and Katie, since they sometimes came to Weasley family dinners with Aunt Angie and Uncle George, and he’d gotten to meet Oliver Wood once thanks to Uncle Ron. He knew Harry, of course._

_He couldn’t tell which red-haired twin was which._

_A soft sigh heralded Ginny reaching over his shoulder, her fingertips stopping just shy of brushing over the photographs surface. “They really were an amazing team,” she murmured._

_Teddy didn’t ask if she meant the Quidditch players, or the twins. He watched the pair of boys sling their arms around each other’s shoulders, one of them reaching to ruffle Harry’s mop of hair, and decided it didn’t really matter._

-HP-

“...and apparently, someone went and misplaced whatever paperwork _should’ve_ been filed for my trial,” Sirius explained, his tone grim and devoid of humor.

“Bloody hell,” one of the twins muttered.

“Pretty much,” Teddy agreed. “And when Wormtail made his escape, he wound up in the countryside, and found himself a nice large wizard family with seven children to hide with.”

Both thirteen year olds drew themselves up a little higher, surprise and horror mingling on their faces. _“Scabbers?!”_ They blurted.

“Yep. That’s why I asked you two to snag him and hand him off to Moony. Now an Auror we trust has the rat, and we should be seeing a Daily Prophet article any day now.”

“Bloody _hell,”_ the other twin repeated. “Percy’s gonna lose his mind when we tell him.” Practically the instant those words left his mouth, the boys blinked, and devilish grins slid into view.

“Ah ah ah,” Teddy warned, wagging a finger at them. _“After_ the news breaks.”

“Right, right, of course-”

“-not like he’d believe us beforehand, anyway.”

Remus made a low sound in his throat. “I hope I don’t need to point out the need for keeping quiet on where your information came from, boys. Teddy still has more work to do, and the last thing he needs is his name getting spread around Hogwarts and included with letters to home.”

“Other people’s letters, that is,” the young man decided to add. “I’ve already had a long chat with your dad, so you don’t need to worry about him.”

“What about Mum?”

_“That_ woman you should _always_ be worried about.” Several snorts rang out, and Teddy took the moment to level a flat stare at the twins. “Lads, I’m telling you now, Molly Weasley is a queen amongst witches who will never hesitate to hug you and feed you, but may Merlin help us all if she ever becomes truly furious.”

“Well, we’ve certainly tried her patience through the years-”

“-and she’s yet to properly throttle either one of us!”

The matching grins slipped away, however, when Teddy continued his stare, and let his voice drop into something much darker. “Because she loves you, boys. But trust me when I say, the moment you or any of your siblings are in danger, she is fully capable of removing the threat - and I’m not just talking about spiders on pillows or bad dreams at midnight.” His gaze softened as he shifted to look at Harry, still sitting quietly at the head of his hospital bed as he absorbed the conversation. “There are few things as terrifyingly capable in this world as a witch protecting her child, after all.”

Green eyes flicked upward to meet his own. After a moment, Harry scooted out from under the sheets, and leaned just far enough for Teddy to meet him with a hug.

Later, after Ron and Neville showed up with Dean Thomas and Seamus Finnegan in tow and Padfoot was soaking up attention like a sponge, Remus caught Teddy’s eye and tilted his head towards the other end of the hall. They didn’t go too far, neither willing to leave the boys unattended for long, but Remus made certain they were out of earshot before speaking. “Dare I ask what threat Molly Weasley removed that makes you speak so solemnly of her?”

Teddy took a long moment before replying. “Moody mentioned the Second War I’m trying to prevent, right?”

Grimly, Remus nodded.

“In the final conflict, the Battle of Hogwarts, Fred Weasley died. A couple hours later, Bellatrix Lestrange made the mistake of laughing about it, right when she’d been dueling Ginny Weasley and two other girls. Molly killed her.”

The older werewolf didn’t breath for several seconds, his eyes darting back and forth between Teddy and the group gathered at the front of the hall. When he did finally exhale, Remus smiled, but his eyes remained dark. “Well, then. Remind me not to get in a serious duel with her anytime soon.”

“You nor anyone else.”


End file.
